VY Canis Majoris compared to its original main-sequence form
VY Canis Majoris (VY CMa) is a red hypergiant star located in the constellation Canis Major. It is a high-luminosity M star with an effective temperature between 3,000 and 3,490 K. During its main sequence, it would have been an O-type star with a mass of 25 solar mass. The diameter of VY CMa is estimated at 1,420 to 2,200 solar radii (3,064,124,800 km); this would make it the largest star ever known.[1] It has a luminosity between 270,000 and 350,000 solar luminosity and a mass of 17 ± 8 solar masses.
| Diameter | 3,064,124,800 km |
|---|---|
| Temperature | 2,727 °C |
| Mass | 17x Sun |
| Spectral type | M2.5 0 |
| Apparent Magnitude | +7.96 |
| Gravity | 0.8913 m/s2 |
| Constellation | Canis Major |