Spica (/ˈspaɪkə/; α Vir, α Virginis, Alpha Virginis) is the brightest star in the constellation Virgo, and the 15th brightest star in the night sky. Located 250 ± 10 light years from Earth, it is actually a spectroscopic binary and rotating ellipsoidal variable—a system whose two main stars are so close together they are egg-shaped rather than spherical, and can only be separated by their spectrum. The primary is a blue giant and a variable star of the Beta Cephei type.