61 Cygni

system

61 Cygni is a wide pair of orange dwarfs 11.4 light-years away in Cygnus. In 1838 Friedrich Bessel measured its parallax — the first reliable distance to any star beyond the Sun — a landmark that revealed the true scale of the cosmos. No planets are confirmed.

Open in 3D viewSee 61 Cygni in the live, interactive 3D map

Key facts

Type

Binary orange dwarfs

Distance

11.40 light-years

Historic

1st stellar parallax (1838)

Confirmed planets

Science

Classification

Type: Binary orange-dwarf system
Stars: 61 Cygni A (K5V, ~0.70 M☉) + 61 Cygni B (K7V, ~0.63 M☉)

History

First stellar parallax: Friedrich Bessel, 1838 · the first measured distance to a star — the 'Flying Star'

Orbit & planets

Mutual orbit: Several centuries, ~85 AU apart on average
Confirmed planets: None

How we know

Note: No planets are confirmed; astrometric 'planet' claims from the 20th century were later refuted. The 1838 parallax is genuine history. The map position is symbolic; the real distance is 11.40 light-years.

Discovery & history

Method: Naked-eye star
Name: '61 Cygni' is a Flamsteed number in Cygnus, the Swan; the pair is nicknamed 'Bessel's Star' and the 'Flying Star'.

Noted by Piazzi in 1804 as the fast-moving 'Flying Star'; in 1838 Bessel measured its parallax — the first reliable distance to any star.

Images

Where to find it — in Cygnus, the Swan (IAU constellation chart). It is an unresolved point of light; its surface has never been imaged. — IAU / Sky & Telescope, R. Sinnott & R. Fienberg (CC BY 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons

Images from open archives · credit shown per image