Canopus is 200,000 times brighter than the Sun. Although it appears slightly less bright than Sirius, it is 7,500 times as bright as Sirius. Canopus is visible from Alexandria, Egypt, but not Greece, a fact often cited to show that the Earth is spherical. Canopus was named by Eratosthenes ca. 250 B.C, working in Alexandria.
Some people claim to see a trace of yellow in Canopus.
Table of 25 Brightest Stars . It is a nova-like irregular variable star found within a diffuse interstellar gas cloud known as NGC 3372. Glowing clouds of gas make this nebula one of the most spectacular sights in the Milky Way. The Eta Carinae nebula is believed to be a stellar nursery, where stars are forming from the obscuring clouds of dust and the luminous gaseous material. He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls them each by name.