by Anthony Ayiomamitis
One of the most recognized and brightest stars, Castor, shines at mag 1.93 and is the well-recognized member of the pair Castor and Pollux in Gemini. It has a luminosity 34.2 times that of the Sun and is approximately 51.6 light-years away.
Technical Details:
Date: Nov 20, 2009 @ 02:35 - 03:25 UT+2
Location: Athens, Greece (38.2997° N, 23.7430° E)
Equipment: AP 160/f7.5 Starfire EDF, AP 1200GTO GEM, SBIG ST-2000XM, SBIG CFW-8A, SBIG LRGB + IR-block
Integrations: LRGB @ 10:10:10:10 using 1-/2-min subs, Binning: 1x1, Image Scale: 1.27" per pixel, +0.0° C
Further Details: http://www.perseus.gr/Astro-Star-Brightest-Gem-Alpha.htm