1. It might be closer to us, 2. it might be a bigger and brighter star.
Arcturus is 35 light years away and has an absolute magnitude of -0.3, which makes it 100 times brighter than the Sun, while Vega is 26 light years away and has an absolute magnitude of 0.5, about half as bright as Arcturus. From Earth they are both about the same brightness.
Vega appears brighter than Arcturus in the night sky because it is closer to Earth, being only about 25 light-years away compared to Arcturus which is around 37 light-years away. Additionally, Vega is a hotter and more luminous star compared to Arcturus, contributing to its perceived brightness.
The apparent brightness of stars depends on:* The distance * The actual brightness * In some cases, the brightness may be dimmed by clouds of dust and gas, between us and the distant star. In the case of Vega and Arcturus, Vega is NOT brighter than Arcturus. Their apparent magnitude (brightness) is about the same, with Arcturus perhaps being slightly brighter, depending on the source consulted. In terms of real brightness ("absolute magnitude"), Arcturus is actually brighter. When consulting numbers, please remember that smaller numbers refer to brighter objects.
A star's brightness is a function of its luminosity, or the amount of energy it produces per unit time. Vega must have a higher luminosity, meaning it fuses more material than Betelgeuse in a given period of time.
Canopus (-0.72), Vega (0.03), Arcturus (-0.04), Procyon (0.38), Hadar (0.61), Aldebaran (0.85), and Achernar (0.46) in order from brightest to dimmest apparent magnitude.
Aldeberan, Vega, Rigel, Betelgeuse, Altair, Arcturus, Sirius, Procyon, Capella, Spica, Antares, Deneb, Regulus, and the Sun are.
Arcturus is a bit brighter than Vega, actually.
Vega appears brighter than Arcturus in the night sky because it is closer to Earth, being only about 25 light-years away compared to Arcturus which is around 37 light-years away. Additionally, Vega is a hotter and more luminous star compared to Arcturus, contributing to its perceived brightness.
The apparent brightness of stars depends on:* The distance * The actual brightness * In some cases, the brightness may be dimmed by clouds of dust and gas, between us and the distant star. In the case of Vega and Arcturus, Vega is NOT brighter than Arcturus. Their apparent magnitude (brightness) is about the same, with Arcturus perhaps being slightly brighter, depending on the source consulted. In terms of real brightness ("absolute magnitude"), Arcturus is actually brighter. When consulting numbers, please remember that smaller numbers refer to brighter objects.
A star's brightness is a function of its luminosity, or the amount of energy it produces per unit time. Vega must have a higher luminosity, meaning it fuses more material than Betelgeuse in a given period of time.
Brightnest is a factor of luminousity and distance as seen from Earth. (Apparent magnitude)Vega - 0.03.Betelgeuse: 0.42So Betelgeuse is brighter as viewed from Earth.
Arcturus is orange in color, and has a mass of 2.188E30 kg. Vega has an apparent magnitude of 0.03, a white color, and the size is unknown. Comments. That answer does not fully answer the question. For example there's nothing about Polaris.
Our Sun is the brightest star of course, but presuming you discount that, the next brightest are:Sirius, Canopus, Alpha Centauri, Arcturus, Vega, Capella, Rigel and Procyon.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_brightest_stars
Arcturus is orange in color, and has a mass of 2.188E30 kg. Vega has an apparent magnitude of 0.03, a white color, and the size is unknown. Comments. That answer does not fully answer the question. For example there's nothing about Polaris.
Arcturus
Vega is brighter than Capella. Vega is closer to Earth than Capella. Vega is blue-white, Capella is yellow-ish. The name Vega comes from Arabic, whereas the name Capella comes from Latin. The meaning of Vega is a type of bird, the meaning of Capella is a type of mammal. :o)
Canopus (-0.72), Vega (0.03), Arcturus (-0.04), Procyon (0.38), Hadar (0.61), Aldebaran (0.85), and Achernar (0.46) in order from brightest to dimmest apparent magnitude.
Vega is a white star with an A-type spectrum. Its absolute magnitude (magnitude at a standard distance of 10 parsecs) is 0.5 making it 4 magnitudes brighter than the Sun, i.e. 40 times brighter. Its distance is 30 light years.