 Lalande 21185 is a red dwarf of apparent magnitude 7 and is thus too dim to be seen with the unaided eye.However, at approximately 8.3 light-years away it is the fifth-closest stellar system to the Sun; only the Alpha Centauri system, Barnard's Star, Luhman 16 and Wolf 359 are known to be closer.thus the star has attracted the attention of science fiction authors and game developers.