"Solar twins" redirects here. For the musical group, see Solar Twins (band). For a star that likely came from the same stellar nursery as the Sun, see Solar sibling.
This illustration compares the somewhat larger and hotter Sun (left) to the relatively inactive star Tau Ceti.
Solar-type stars, solar analogs (also analogues), and solar twins are stars that are particularly similar to the Sun. The stellar classification is a hierarchy with solar twin being most like the Sun followed by solar analog and then solar-type.[1] Observations of these stars are important for understanding better the properties of the Sun in relation to other stars and the habitability of planets.[2]
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