Procyon
This article is about the star. Procyon is also the mammalian genus to which Raccoons belong.Procyon (α CMi / α Canis Minoris /
Alpha Canis Minoris) is the brightest star in the
constellation Canis Minor and the
eighth brightest star in the nighttime sky.
Its name comes from the Greek
προκύον (
prokúon), meaning "before the dog", since it precedes the "Dog Star"
Sirius as it travels across the sky due to
Earth's rotation. (Although Procyon has a greater
right ascension, it also has a more northerly
declination, which means it will rise above the
horizon earlier than Sirius from most northerly latitudes.) These two
dog stars are referred to in the most ancient literature and were venerated by the
Babylonians and the
Egyptians.
Procyon is a
vertex of the
Winter Triangle.
Procyon is one of the
closest stars to
Earth's
solar system, being only 3.5
pc or 11.41
light years away.Like
Sirius, it is a
binary star —the main star (
Procyon A) having a faint
white dwarf companion (
Procyon B). Its closest neighbour is
Luyten's star, 0.34 pc or 1.11 ly away.
|
Light variability of Sol vs. that of Procyon |
Procyon A is a yellowish-white star somewhat larger and 7.5 times brighter than the
Sun, of spectral type F. In fact, because it is bright even for its spectral class, it is thought to be a
subgiant, meaning it has just finished
fusing its hydrogen into helium and begun to expand. So far, it is not thought that the star has begun to "redden" but as it continues to expand, the star will swell to about 80 - 150 times its current diameter and become a red or orange color. This will probably happen within 10 - 100 million years. It is expected that the Sun will also go through this process when it begins to die.
In late June of
2004,
Canada's orbital
MOST satellite telescope completed a 32-day survey of Procyon A. The continuous optical monitoring was intended to confirm oscillations in its brightness observed from Earth. During the entire two month period however, no fluctuation in intensity whatsoever was observed. These findings have caused astrophysicists to question the accepted tenets of
helioseismology, and theories of star formation.
Procyon B is a faint
white dwarf star, with an average separation from Procyon A of about 16 times the
Earth's distance from the
Sun or roughly the distance between
Uranus and the Sun.
Astrologically, Procyon portends wealth, fame, and good fortune.
Medieval astrologers considered it one of fifteen
Behenian stars, associated with
agate and
water crowfoot. According to
Cornelius Agrippa, its
kabbalistic symbol is
 |
Agrippa1531_Canisminor.png |
.
* In the book
Star Trek: Star Charts, Procyon is said to be the primary star system for Andoria, though this is a conjecture unsupported by onscreen evidence in any
Star Trek series or film. According to
Star Trek: Enterprise, the star was the scene of a
formidable Federation victory during a war against an alien species known as the
Sphere Builders. The USS
Enterprise-J took part in this battle. In 2153, Captain
Jonathan Archer was brought 400 years forward in time to witness part of the battle.
* In the
Viagens Interplanetarias stories of
L. Sprague de Camp its system contains the inhabited planets of Osiris, Isis, and Thoth.
* The human colony world of We Made It (which is mentioned in
Larry Niven's stories and books of the
Known Space) orbits Procyon.
Pierson's Puppeteers are said to have evolved in a
solar system with a star similar to Procyon (which later became a
red giant).
* In the
Terran Trade Authority, Procyon is orbited by three planets, the middle of which,
Sisuphos, is a barely-habitable mining world.
* In
Uller Uprising by
H. Beam Piper,
Procyon is the name of a contragravity warship equipped with rockets and autocannon of 40mm and 90mm calibers. It is instrumental in crushing the 'Geek Rebellion' of native, anti-human Ullerans.
* In
Star Control II: The Ur-Quan Masters, Procyon is the primary star for the homeworld of the Chmmr, a new race made from the fusion of the Chenjesu and the Mmrmmhrrm.
*
List of nearest stars*
List of brightest starsA character in Gregory Benford's 2004 novel,
Beyond Infinity, is an evolved Raccoon, referred to as a Procyon. The character, "Seeker After Patterns", is a wise Buddhist Monk-type, dispensing wry wisdom and periodically displaying selfless bravery.
*
Sol Station — Procyon
