How far away is the nearest star beyond our sun?

The nearest star beyond our sun is Proxima Centauri, located about 4.24 light-years away. That translates to roughly 25 trillion miles or about 40 trillion kilometers. In terms of the distance light travels, a beam of light leaving Proxima Centauri today would take just over four years to reach Earth. If we sent the fastest spacecraft ever built, it would take tens of thousands of years to get there. Proxima Centauri is a small red dwarf star and is part of the Alpha Centauri triple star system, though it is slightly closer to us than its two companion stars, Alpha Centauri A and B.