Canopus (also known as Alpha Carinae) is the brightest star in the southern constellation of Carina, and the second brightest star in the night-time sky, second only to Sirius. Located about 310 light years away from our solar system, Canopus is a yellowish-white supergiant star, with a luminosity 15,000 times that of the Sun and 65 times its diameter.

In Star Trek original series episode "Arena" , USS Enterprise helmsman Hikaru Sulu used Canopus as a reference point to plot the location of the Enterprise after it was flung 500 parsecs by the Metrons. In the episode "Wolf in the Fold", Alpha Carinae V is home to the creature Drella. In the episode "The Ultimate Computer", the USS Enterprise surveyed Alpha Carinae II as a test of the M-5 computer's capabilities.

Another astronomic phenomenon in constellation of Carina is a large nebula, the Eta Carinae Nebula (NGC 3372) . An image of the nebula, taken by the Hubble telescope, is actually on display in the Astrometrics lab aboard the USS Voyager.