40 Eridani

40 Eridani is a triple star system less than 16.5 light years away from Earth. It is in the constellation Eridanus. The primary star of the system, 40 Eridani A, is easily visible to the naked eye. The pair 40 Eridani B/C was discovered on January 31st, 1783, by William Herschel. In 1910, it was discovered that although component B was a faint star, it was white in color. This meant that it had to be a small star; in fact it was a white dwarf, the first discovered.

In the realm of science fiction, 40 Eridani is analogous to the fictional Vulcan system featured in the Star Trek mythos. One planet, Vulcan, exists within the 40 Eridani system and revolves around the star 40 Eridani A.