How Long Would It Take to Travel to Polaris (The North Star)?

Polaris is a yellow supergiant 433 light-years away that currently serves as Earth's North Star. It's actually a triple star system, with the primary being a Cepheid variable star.

Distance 433 light-years
Star Type Yellow supergiant (F7Ib)
Constellation Ursa Minor
Apparent Magnitude 1.98

How Far Is Polaris from Earth?

Polaris is 433 light-years from Earth. That is about 4.1 quadrillion km (2.55 quadrillion miles), or 27.4 million astronomical units.

Distance to Polaris in different units
Unit Distance
Light-years433
Kilometers4,100,000,000,000,000 km
Miles2,550,000,000,000,000 miles
Astronomical units (AU)27,400,000 astronomical units
Parsecs133

Light from Polaris takes 433 years to reach Earth, so the light you see tonight left Polaris 433 years ago.

Voyager 1, the fastest object humans have sent into deep space, travels at about 17 km/s. It would need about 7.64 million years to cover this distance.

Time Dilation Formula Calculator

Spacecraft accelerates continuously throughout the journey. Realistic for ion drives or theoretical propulsion.

Distance to Polaris
Speed vs Time
This chart shows how quickly you accelerate to a fraction of the speed of light over time.
Distance vs Time
Shows distance covered (in light-years) over time.
Traveler's vs Observer's Time
Shows how time experienced by the traveler differs from time on Earth.
Energy Requirement vs Distance
Shows the (simplified) energy requirements for maintaining relativistic travel as distance increases.
Doppler Shift vs Time
Shows how the Doppler effect changes observed wavelengths over time.
Velocity vs Distance
Shows how your speed changes as you travel further from your starting point.
Lorentz Factor vs Time
Shows how the Lorentz factor (γ) grows over time as relativistic effects increase.
Proper vs Observer Distance
Shows how distance measurements differ between the traveler's frame and the observer's frame.

Facts About Polaris

Notable For: The North Star, used for navigation for millennia

Frequently Asked Questions

How long to travel to Polaris?

At light speed, it would take 433 years to reach Polaris. At 1g constant acceleration with deceleration, a traveler would experience about 87 years.

Will Polaris always be the North Star?

No, Polaris will remain close to the celestial north pole for about 1,000 more years. Due to Earth's axial precession, different stars take turns being the 'North Star' over a 26,000-year cycle.

How far away is Polaris?

Polaris is 433 light-years from Earth, which is about 4.1 quadrillion km or 2.55 quadrillion miles. Light from Polaris takes 433 years to reach us.

How many light-years is Polaris from Earth?

Polaris is 433 light-years from Earth. One light-year is about 9.46 trillion km, the distance light travels in one year. In parsecs, Polaris is about 133 parsecs away.

Explore Similar Destinations

Antares 550 light-years Canopus 310 light-years Spica 250 light-years

How to Use This Calculator

This time dilation calculator lets you enter a distance in light-years and acceleration in m/s² to see how time dilation affects your journey. It shows differences between traveler and observer times, maximum velocity, energy requirements, Doppler shift, Lorentz factor, and how distances vary between reference frames. Charts appear after you calculate.

Results

  • Traveler's Time: How much time the person on the spaceship experiences
  • Observer's Time: How much time passes on Earth during the journey
  • Maximum Velocity: The highest speed reached, as a fraction of light speed

Interactive Charts

  • Speed vs Time: How quickly you accelerate towards light speed
  • Distance vs Time: How far you've traveled over time
  • Traveler's vs Observer's Time: Compare time passage between Earth and spaceship
  • Energy Requirement vs Distance: How much energy is needed as you travel further
  • Doppler Shift vs Time: How light wavelengths change during your journey
  • Velocity vs Distance: Your speed at different distances
  • Lorentz Factor vs Time: How much time dilation increases with speed
  • Proper vs Observer Distance: How distance measurements differ between frames

What is Time Dilation?

Time dilation is an effect from Einstein's theory of special relativity. The faster you move, the slower time passes for you compared to someone standing still. At 90% of light speed, time passes about 2.3 times slower for the traveler than for someone on Earth.

What is the Time Dilation Formula?

The Time Dilation Formula is:

t' = t / √(1 - v²/c²)

Where:
t' = time measured by the observer (on Earth)
t = time experienced by the traveler
v = velocity of the traveler
c = speed of light (299,792,458 meters per second)