Gliese 445
Gliese 445 (Gl 445 or AC +79 3888) is an M-type main sequence star in the northern part of the constellation Camelopardalis. Location. It is currently 17.1 light-years from Earth and has an apparent magnitude of 10.8. It is visible from north of the Tropic of Cancer all night long, but not to the naked eye. Because the star is a red dwarf with a mass only a quarter to a third of that of our Sun, scientists question the ability of this system to support life. Gliese 445 is also a known X-ray source . The "Voyager 1" probe and Gliese 445 will pass one another within 1.6 light-years in about 40,000 years. By that time Gliese 445 will be in a part of the sky different from its present location. The probe will no longer be operational. Also, given the star's inherent low brightness, even at that distance it would be barely visible to the naked eye of a hypothetical human being, with an apparent magnitude of only 5.72. Solar encounter. While the Voyager probe moves through space towards a 1.6-light-year minimum distance from Gliese 445, the star is rapidly  approaching our Sun. At the time the probe passes Gliese 445, the star will be about 1.059 parsecs (3.45 light-years) from our Sun, but with less than half the brightness necessary to be seen with the naked eye. At that time, Gliese 445 will be approximately tied with Ross 248 for being the closest star to our Sun (see List of nearest stars#Future and past).