The Proxima Centauri

The next nearest star to the earth is a star called proxima Centauri. It is about 4.2 light years away. One light year is about distance light travel in one year it is a unit for distance, not time. It takes about eight minutes for light from the Sun to reach Earth. The light from proxima Centauri takes 4.2 years to reach us since it is 4.2 light years away. Light from a distant star takes many years to reach the earth, so when we look at distant stars, we are actually looking back in time.

The Proxima Centauri