Capella — Estrella en Auriga

Capella is the sixth brightest star in the sky and the brightest en Auriga. It is actually a spectroscopic sistema binario of two gigante amarilla stars (G8III + G0III) orbiting each other every 104 days, located a unos 43 años luz de la Tierra. The combined luminosity of the pair is roughly 80 times that of el Sol. A second, fainter pair of enana rojas orbits the bright pair at a great distance, making Capella a quadruple star system.

A brilliant golden-yellow star easily found high in the northern sky during invierno por la noche. It is circumpolar from most of Europe and northern North America, never setting below the horizon. At magnitude 0.08, it is unmistakable — look for the bright pentagon of Auriga with Capella as its most luminous vertex. Mejor en the cielo nocturno from November through April. The close binary nature is not resolvable in any telescopio.

The name Capella comes from Latin meaning 'little she-goat,' associated with the mythological goat Amalthea that suckled the infant Zeus. The ancient Romans called it 'the Goat Star.' Capella's binary nature was discovered spectroscopically in 1899 by William Campbell, and the orbital elements were refined over the following decades. The star has been important in many cultures — the Bedouins called it 'the Driver,' and in Hindu astronomy it was associated with the heart of Brahma.