Alp

Its story

α Muscae is the brightest star of the Fly, a tiny southern constellation often overlooked. A blue subgiant lying about 315 light-years away, it is nine times more massive than the Sun and pulses gently every 2.17 hours, like an overheated heart. That rhythm —imperceptible to the naked eye— places it among the Beta Cephei variables, whose light is governed by iron trapped deep inside.