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Alnair

Al Nair, Al Na’ir, Alpha Gruis

Blue Star in Grus

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Proper Names	Alnair, Al Nair, Al Na'ir
Bayer Designation	Alpha Gruis
Flamsteed Number	None
HR (BSC)	8425
HD	209952
Constellation	Grus
Right Ascension	22h 8m 14s
Declination	-46° 57' 40"
Distance	101 light years 31 parsecs
Magnitude	Apparent: +1.8 Absolute: -0.7
Spectral Class	B7IV blue subgiant
Optimum Visibility	September (Usually visible from southern latitudes)
Notes	The bright blue star Alnair in Grus is not to be confused with another star of the same name. The somewhat fainter Zeta Centauri, far to the west of Grus, is also sometimes given the name Alnair.

The bright object quarter of a degree to the southeast of Alnair is not a star, but a distant lenticular galaxy, NGC 7213. This galaxy is oriented face-on as seen from Earth, and little of its tenuous spiral structure is detectable in this image. Imagery provided by Aladin sky atlas

Alnair, brightest of the stars that make up Grus the Crane, is just over one hundred light years from the Solar System.

Alnair means 'The Bright One', and its magnitude of +1.7 certainly makes this variable blue star the brightest in its home constellation of Grus, the Crane.

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