The Sirius star system is composed of two main stars: Sirius A and Sirius B. Sirius A is the brighter of the two and is the most luminous star in the night sky as observed from Earth. With an apparent magnitude of -1.46, Sirius A is almost twice as bright as the next brightest star, Canopus. It is about 25 times more luminous than the Sun. Sirius B, on the other hand, is a faint white dwarf with an apparent magnitude of 8.44, which is not visible to the naked eye, but contributes to the overall mass and gravitational interactions within the system. The distance to the Sirius system is approximately 8.6 light-years from Earth, making it one of the closest known systems. This proximity significantly increases its perceived brightness despite not being extraordinarily luminous compared to other stellar giants in the galaxy.