Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky with a visual apparent magnitude of −1.46, almost twice as bright as Canopus, the next brightest star. The star has the Bayer designation Alpha Canis Majoris. What the naked eye perceives as a single star is actually a binary star system, consisting of a white main sequence star termed Sirius A, and a faint white dwarf companion called Sirius B. At a distance of 2.6 parsecs (8.6 light years), the Sirius system is one of our near neighbors. Sirius A is about twice as massive as the Sun and has an absolute visual magnitude of 1.42. It is 25 times more luminous than the Sun but has a significantly lower luminosity than other bright stars such as Canopus or Rigel. The system is between 200 and 300 million years old. It was originally composed of two bright bluish stars. The more massive of these, Sirius B, consumed its resources and became a red giant before shedding its outer layers and collapsing into its current state as a white dwarf around 120 million years ago. Sirius is also known colloquially as the "Dog Star", reflecting its prominence in its constellation, Canis Major. The heliacal rising of Sirius marked the flooding of the Nile in Ancient Egypt and the 'Dog Days' of summer for the Ancient Greeks, while to the Polynesians it marked winter and was an important star for navigation around the Pacific Ocean.

Read the rest of this article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sirius

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1644:

The combined forces of the Scottish Covenanters and the English Parliamentarians defeated the Royalists at the Battle of Marston Moor, one of the decisive encounters of the English Civil War, near York. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Marston_Moor

1937:

Aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan disappeared over the Pacific Ocean during an attempt to make a circumnavigational flight. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amelia_Earhart

1964:

U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act into law , outlawing segregation in schools, at the workplace, and other facilities that served the general public. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_Rights_Act_of_1964

1976:

More than a year after the end of the Vietnam War, North and South Vietnam officially united under communist rule to form the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam

1997:

The Thai baht rapidly lost half of its value, marking the beginning of the Asian Financial Crisis. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1997_Asian_Financial_Crisis

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

avatar (n): 1. (Hinduism) The incarnation of a deity, particularly Vishnu. 2. The physical embodiment of an idea or concept; a personification. 3. A digital representation or handle of a person or being http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/avatar

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Words do not express thoughts very well. They always become a little different immediately they are expressed, a little distorted, a little foolish. And yet it also pleases me and seems right that what is of value and wisdom to one man seems nonsense to another. --Hermann Hesse http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Hermann_Hesse