Editing Lyra (section)

===Stars===
{{See also|List of stars in Lyra}}
[[File:Lyra 2019-12-31.jpg|thumb|The constellation Lyra, enhanced for color and contrast.  Brightest five stars are labeled.]]
German cartographer [[Johann Bayer]] used the Greek letters [[alpha]] through [[Nu (letter)|nu]] to label the most prominent stars in the constellation. English astronomer [[John Flamsteed]] observed and labelled two stars each as [[Delta (letter)|delta]], [[epsilon]], [[zeta]] and nu. He added [[Pi (letter)|pi]] and [[rho]], not using [[Xi (letter)|xi]] and [[omicron]] as Bayer used these letters to denote Cygnus and Hercules on his map.<ref name=wagman>{{cite book | last = Wagman  | first = Morton  | date = 2003  | title = Lost Stars: Lost, Missing and Troublesome Stars from the Catalogues of Johannes Bayer, Nicholas Louis de Lacaille, John Flamsteed, and Sundry Others  | publisher = The McDonald & Woodward Publishing Company  | location = Blacksburg, Virginia  | isbn = 978-0-939923-78-6 |pages=204–06}}</ref>

The brightest star in the constellation is Vega (Alpha Lyrae), a [[main-sequence]] star of [[spectral type]] A0Va.<ref name="GrayCorbally2003">{{Cite journal |last1=Gray |first1=R. O. |first2=C. J. |last2=Corbally |first3=R. F. |last3=Garrison |first4=M. T. |last4=McFadden |first5=P. E. |last5=Robinson |title=Contributions to the Nearby Stars (NStars) Project: Spectroscopy of Stars Earlier than M0 within 40 parsecs: The Northern Sample I |journal=The Astronomical Journal |volume=132 |issue=1 |pages=161–70 |date=2006 |doi=10.1086/504637 |bibcode=2006AJ....132..161G |arxiv=astro-ph/0603770 |s2cid=119476992 }}</ref> Only 7.7 parsecs distant,<ref name="vanLeeuwen2007">{{Cite journal |first=F. |last=van Leeuwen |date=2007 |title=Validation of the new Hipparcos reduction |journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics |volume=474 |issue=2 |pages=653–664 |bibcode=2007A&A...474..653V |doi=10.1051/0004-6361:20078357 |arxiv=0708.1752 |s2cid=18759600 }}</ref> Vega is a [[Delta Scuti variable]], varying between [[apparent magnitude|magnitudes]] &minus;0.02 and 0.07 over 0.2 days.<ref name="Breger1979">{{Cite journal |last=Breger |first=M. |title=Delta Scuti and related stars |journal=Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific |volume=91 |pages=5–26 |doi=10.1086/130433 |bibcode=1979PASP...91....5B |date=1979 |arxiv=astro-ph/0003373v1 |s2cid=16994385 }}</ref> On average, it is the second-brightest star of the northern hemisphere (after [[Arcturus]]) and the fifth-brightest star in all, surpassed only by Arcturus, [[Alpha Centauri]], [[Canopus]], and [[Sirius]]. Vega was the [[pole star]] in the year 12,000 BCE, and will again become the pole star around 14,000 CE.<ref>{{cite book | first1=Archie E. | display-authors=1 | last1=Roy | last2=Clarke | first2=David | date=2003 | title=Astronomy: Principles and Practice | publisher=CRC Press | isbn=978-0-7503-0917-2 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book | first1=Richard Hinckley | last1=Allen | date=1963 | title=Star Names: Their Lore and Meaning | publisher=Courier Dover Publications | isbn=978-0-486-21079-7 | url-access=registration | url=https://archive.org/details/starnamestheirlo00alle }}</ref>

Vega is one of the most magnificent of all stars, and has been called "arguably the next most important star in the sky after the [[Sun]]".<ref name="GulliverHill1994">{{Cite journal |last1=Gulliver |first1=A. F. |last2=Hill |first2=G. |last3=Adelman |first3=S. J. |title=Vega: A rapidly rotating pole-on star |journal=The Astrophysical Journal |date=1994 |volume=429 |issue=2 |pages=L81–L84 |doi=10.1086/187418 |bibcode=1994ApJ...429L..81G }}</ref> Vega was the first star other than the Sun to be [[astrophotography|photographed]],<ref name="HoldenCampbell1890">{{Cite journal |last1=Holden |first1=E. S. |last2=Campbell |first2=W. W. |title=Photographs of Venus, Mercury and Alpha Lyræ in Daylight |journal=Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific |date=1890 |volume=2 |issue=10 |pages=249–250 |doi=10.1086/120156 |bibcode=1890PASP....2..249H |s2cid=120286863 |doi-access=free }}</ref> as well as the first to have a clear [[astronomical spectroscopy|spectrum]] recorded, showing [[absorption line]]s for the first time.<ref name="Barker">{{Cite journal |last=Barker |first=G. F. |title=On the Henry Draper Memorial Photographs of Stellar Spectra |journal=Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society |date=1887 |volume=24 |issue=125 |pages=166–172 |jstor=983130}}</ref> The star was the first single main-sequence star other than the Sun to be known to emit [[X-ray]]s,<ref name="TopkaFabricant1979">{{citation |display-authors=1 |last1=Topka |first1=K. |last2=Fabricant |first2=D. |last3=Harnden |first3=F.R. Jr. |last4=Gorenstein |first4=P. |last5=Rosner |first5=R. |title=Detection of soft X-rays from Alpha Lyrae and Eta Bootis with an imaging X-ray telescope |journal=Astrophysical Journal |date=1979 |volume=229 |page=661 |doi=10.1086/157000 |bibcode=1979ApJ...229..661T |doi-access=free }}</ref> and is surrounded by a circumstellar [[debris disk]], similar to the [[Kuiper Belt]].<ref name="SuRieke2005">{{citation |display-authors=1 |last1=Su |first1=K. Y. L. |last2=Rieke |first2=G. H. |last3=Misselt |first3=K. A. |last4=Stansberry |first4=J. A. |last5=Moro-Martin |first5=A. |last6=Stapelfeldt |first6=K. R. |last7=Werner |first7=M. W. |last8=Trilling |first8=D. E. |last9=Bendo |first9=G. J. |title=The Vega Debris Disk: A Surprise from ''Spitzer'' |journal=The Astrophysical Journal |date=2005 |volume=628 |issue=1 |pages=487–500 |doi=10.1086/430819 |bibcode=2005ApJ...628..487S |arxiv=astro-ph/0504086 |s2cid=18898968 }}</ref> Vega forms one corner of the famous [[Summer Triangle]] asterism; along with [[Altair]] and [[Deneb]], these three stars form a prominent triangle during the northern hemisphere summer.<ref name=ridpath>{{cite book|author=Ian Ridpath|title=The Monthly Sky Guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d4ghAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA14|date=  2012|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|isbn=978-1-139-62066-6|page=14}}</ref>

Vega also forms one vertex of a much smaller triangle, along with Epsilon and [[Zeta Lyrae (disambiguation)|Zeta Lyrae]]. Zeta forms a wide [[binary star]] visible in binoculars, consisting of an [[Am star]] and an [[Stellar classification#Class F|F-type]] [[subgiant]]. The Am star has an additional close companion, bringing the total number of stars in the system to three.<ref name="EggletonTokovinin2008"/> Epsilon is a more famous wide binary that can even be separated by the [[naked eye]] under excellent conditions.<ref>{{cite book
 | last = Burnham
 | first = Robert
 | title = Burnham's Celestial Handbook
 | year = 1966
 | publisher = Dover Publications Inc.
 | isbn = 0-486-24064-9
 | pages = 1151–1153
 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gPd8k5xn3JEC&q=burnham%27s+celestial+handbook
}}
</ref> Both components are themselves close binaries which can be seen with telescopes to consist of [[Stellar classification#Class A|A-]] and F-type stars, and a faint star was recently found to orbit component C as well, for a total of five stars.<ref name="EggletonTokovinin2008"/>

In contrast to Zeta and Epsilon Lyrae, [[Delta Lyrae]] is an [[optical double]], with the two stars simply lying along the same line of sight east of Zeta. The brighter and closer of the two, [[Delta2 Lyrae|Delta<sup>2</sup> Lyrae]], is a 4th-magnitude red [[bright giant]] that varies [[semiregular variable|semiregularly]] by around 0.2 magnitudes<ref name="BakosTremko1991">{{Cite journal |last1=Bakos |first1=G. A. |last2=Tremko |first2=J. |title=A photometric and spectroscopic study of δ2 Lyrae |journal=Contrib. Astron. Obs. Skalnaté Pleso |volume=21 |pages=99–106 |date=1991 |bibcode=1991CoSka..21...99B}}</ref> with a dominant period of 79 days,<ref name="LloydWest1996">{{Cite journal |last1=Lloyd |first1=C. |last2=West |first2=K. W. |title=Observations of Low-amplitude Late-Type Variables |journal=Information Bulletin on Variable Stars |issue=4335 |page=1 |date=1996 |volume=4335 |bibcode=1996IBVS.4335....1L}}</ref> while the fainter [[Delta1 Lyrae|Delta<sup>1</sup> Lyrae]] is a [[spectroscopic binary]] consisting of a [[Stellar classification#Class B|B-type]] primary and an unknown secondary.<ref name="EggletonTokovinin2008">{{cite journal |last1=Eggleton |first1=P. P. |last2=Tokovinin |first2=A. A. |title=A catalogue of multiplicity among bright stellar systems |journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |volume=389 |issue=2 |pages=869–879 |date=September 2008 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2966.2008.13596.x |doi-access=free |bibcode=2008MNRAS.389..869E |arxiv=0806.2878|s2cid=14878976 }}</ref> Both systems, however, have very similar [[radial velocity|radial velocities]], and are the two brightest members of a sparse open cluster known as the [[Delta Lyrae cluster]].<ref name="Eggen1968">{{Cite journal |last1=Eggen |first1=O. J. |title=Photometric evidence for the existence of a delta Lyrae cluster |journal=Astrophysical Journal |volume=152 |page=77 |date=1968 |doi=10.1086/149525 |bibcode=1968ApJ...152...77E}}</ref>

South of Delta is Sulafat ([[Gamma Lyrae]]), a [[blue giant]] and the second-brightest star in the constellation. Around 190 parsecs distant,<ref name="vanLeeuwen2007"/> it has been referred to as a "superficially normal" star.<ref name="AdelmanCaliskan2001">{{cite journal |last1=Adelman |first1=S. J. |last2=Caliskan |first2=H. |last3=Kocer |first3=D. |last4=Kablan |first4=H. |last5=Yüce |first5=K. |last6=Engin |first6=S. |title=Elemental abundance analyses with DAO spectrograms |journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics |volume=371 |issue=3 |year=2001 |pages=1078–1083 |doi=10.1051/0004-6361:20010408 |bibcode=2001A&A...371.1078A|doi-access=free }}</ref>

The final star forming the lyre's figure is Sheliak ([[Beta Lyrae]]), also a binary composed of a blue bright giant and an early B-type star.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1051/0004-6361/201936595 |arxiv=1909.04612 |title=Gaia 8: Discovery of a star cluster containing β Lyrae |journal=Astronomy & Astrophysics |volume=630 |pages=L8 |year=2019 |last1=Bastian |first1=U. |bibcode=2019A&A...630L...8B |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |bibcode=2018A&A...618A.112M |title=Physical properties of β Lyrae a and its opaque accretion disk |journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics |volume=618 |pages=A112 |last1=Mourard |first1=D. |last2=Brož |first2=M. |last3=Nemravová |first3=J. A. |last4=Harmanec |first4=P. |last5=Budaj |first5=J. |last6=Baron |first6=F. |last7=Monnier |first7=J. D. |last8=Schaefer |first8=G. H. |last9=Schmitt |first9=H. |last10=Tallon-Bosc |first10=I. |last11=Armstrong |first11=J. T. |last12=Baines |first12=E. K. |last13=Bonneau |first13=D. |last14=Božić |first14=H. |last15=Clausse |first15=J. M. |last16=Farrington |first16=C. |last17=Gies |first17=D. |last18=Juryšek |first18=J. |last19=Korčáková |first19=D. |last20=McAlister |first20=H. |last21=Meilland |first21=A. |last22=Nardetto |first22=N. |last23=Svoboda |first23=P. |last24=Šlechta |first24=M. |last25=Wolf |first25=M. |last26=Zasche |first26=P. |year=2018 |arxiv=1807.04789 |doi=10.1051/0004-6361/201832952 |s2cid=73647379 }}</ref><ref>{{citation | display-authors=1 | last1=Zhao | first1=M. | last2=Gies | first2=D. | last3=Monnier | first3=J. D. | last4=Thureau | first4=N. | last5=Pedretti | first5=E. | last6=Baron | first6=F. | last7=Merand | first7=A. | last8=ten Brummelaar | first8=T. | last9=McAlister | first9=H. | title=First Resolved Images of the Eclipsing and Interacting Binary β Lyrae | journal=The Astrophysical Journal | volume=684 | issue=2 | pages=L95–L98 |date=September 2008 | doi=10.1086/592146 | bibcode=2008ApJ...684L..95Z | arxiv=0808.0932 | s2cid=17510817 | postscript = . }}</ref> In this case, the stars are so close together that the larger giant is overflowing its [[Roche lobe]] and transferring material to the secondary, forming a [[semidetached binary|semidetached]] system. The secondary, originally the less massive of the two, has accreted so much mass that it is now substantially more massive, albeit smaller, than the primary, and is surrounded by a thick [[accretion disk]].<ref name="Harmanec2002">{{cite journal |last1=Harmanec |first1=P. |title=The ever challenging emission-line binary β Lyrae |journal=Astronomische Nachrichten |volume=323 |issue=2 |year=2002 |pages=87–98 |bibcode=2002AN....323...87H |doi=10.1002/1521-3994(200207)323:2<87::AID-ASNA87>3.0.CO;2-P}}</ref> The plane of the orbit is aligned with Earth and the system thus shows [[eclipsing binary|eclipses]], dropping nearly a full magnitude from its 3rd-magnitude baseline every 13 days,<ref name="Hipparcos">{{cite book |author=European Space Agency |author-link=European Space Agency |title=The HIPPARCOS and TYCHO catalogues. Astrometric and photometric star catalogues derived from the ESA HIPPARCOS Space Astrometry Mission |journal=Esa Special Publication |publisher=Noordwijk |location=[[Netherlands]] |volume=1200 |year=1997 |isbn=9290923997 |bibcode=1997ESASP1200.....E}}</ref> although its period is increasing by around 19 seconds per year.<ref name="ZhaoGies2008">{{citation |display-authors=1 |last1=Zhao |first1=M. |last2=Gies |first2=D. |last3=Monnier |first3=J. D. |last4=Thureau |first4=N. |last5=Pedretti |first5=E. |last6=Baron |first6=F. |last7=Merand |first7=A. |last8=ten Brummelaar |first8=T. |last9=McAlister |first9=H. |title=First Resolved Images of the Eclipsing and Interacting Binary β Lyrae |journal=The Astrophysical Journal |volume=684 |issue=2 |pages=L95–L98 |date=2008 |doi=10.1086/592146 |bibcode=2008ApJ...684L..95Z |arxiv=0808.0932 |s2cid=17510817 }}</ref> It is the prototype of the [[Beta Lyrae variable]]s, eclipsing semidetached binaries of early spectral types in which there are no exact onsets of eclipses, but rather continuous changes in brightness.<ref name="AAVSOVartypes">{{cite web |url=http://www.aavso.org/vsx/index.php?view=about.vartypes |title=Variable Star Type Designations in the VSX |last1=Otero |first1=S. A. |last2=Watson |first2=C. |last3=Wils |first3=P. |work=AAVSO Website |publisher=[[American Association of Variable Star Observers]] |access-date=29 July 2015 |archive-date=11 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411162004/https://www.aavso.org/vsx/index.php?view=about.vartypes |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Lyra constellation detail long exposure.jpg|thumb|left|A long-exposure image of Lyra]]
Another easy-to-spot variable is the bright [[R Lyrae]], north of the main asterism. Also known as 13 Lyrae, it is a 4th-magnitude [[red giant]] semiregular variable that varies by several tenths of a magnitude.<ref name="KoenEyer2002">{{cite journal |last1=Koen |first1=Chris |last2=Eyer |first2=Laurent |title=New periodic variables from the Hipparcos epoch photometry |journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |volume=331 |issue=1 |year=2002 |pages=45–59 |bibcode=2002MNRAS.331...45K |doi=10.1046/j.1365-8711.2002.05150.x |doi-access=free |arxiv=astro-ph/0112194 |s2cid=10505995 }}</ref> Its periodicity is complex, with several different periods of varying lengths, most notably one of 46 days and one of 64 days.<ref name="PercyWilson2001">{{cite journal |last1=Percy |first1=John R. |last2=Wilson |first2=Joseph B. |last3=Henry |first3=Gregory W. |title=Long-TermVRIPhotometry of Small-Amplitude Red Variables. I. Light Curves and Periods |journal=Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific |volume=113 |issue=786 |year=2001 |pages=983–996 |bibcode=2001PASP..113..983P |doi=10.1086/322153|doi-access=free }}</ref> Even further north is [[FL Lyrae]], a much fainter 9th-magnitude [[Algol variable]] that drops by half a magnitude every 2.18 days during the primary eclipse. Both components are main-sequence stars, the primary being late F-type and the secondary late [[Stellar classification#Class G|G-type]]. The system was one of the first main-sequence eclipsing binaries containing G-type star to have its properties known as well as the better-studied early-type eclipsing binaries.<ref name="PopperLacy1986">{{cite journal |last1=Popper |first1=D. M. |last2=Lacy |first2=C. H. |last3=Frueh |first3=M. L. |last4=Turner |first4=A. E. |title=Properties of main-sequence eclipsing binaries - Into the G stars with HS Aurigae, FL Lyrae, and EW Orionis |journal=The Astronomical Journal |volume=91 |year=1986 |pages=383 |bibcode=1986AJ.....91..383P |doi=10.1086/114018}}</ref>

At the very northernmost edge of the constellation is the even fainter [[V361 Lyrae]], an eclipsing binary that does not easily fall into one of the traditional classes, with features of Beta Lyrae, [[W Ursae Majoris variable|W Ursae Majoris]], and [[cataclysmic variable]]s.<ref name="AndronovRichter1987">{{cite journal |last1=Andronov |first1=I. L. |last2=Richter |first2=G. A. |title=V 361 Lyrae: An exotic binary system with a "Hot Spot" between the components? |journal=Astronomische Nachrichten |volume=308 |issue=4 |year=1987 |pages=235–238 |bibcode=1987AN....308..235A |doi=10.1002/asna.2113080403}}</ref><ref name="ShugarovGoranskij1990">{{cite journal |last1=Shugarov |first1=S. Y. |last2=Goranskij |first2=V. P. |last3=Galkina |first3=M. P. |last4=Lipunova |first4=N. A. |title=The Unique Manifestation of the Matter Outflow in the Eclipsing Binary System V361 Lyr |journal=Information Bulletin on Variable Stars |issue=3472 |page=1 |date=June 1990 |volume=3472 |bibcode=1990IBVS.3472....1S}}</ref> It may be a representative of a very brief phase in which the system is transitioning into a [[contact binary]].<ref name="HilditchColliercameron1997">{{cite journal |last1=Hilditch |first1=R. W. |last2=Collier Cameron |first2=A. |last3=Hill |first3=G. |last4=Bell |first4=S. A. |last5=Harries |first5=T. J. |title=Spectroscopy and eclipse-mapping of the mass-exchanging binary star V361 LYR |journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |volume=291 |issue=4 |pages=749–792 |date=1997 |bibcode=1997MNRAS.291..749H |doi=10.1093/mnras/291.4.749|doi-access=free }}</ref> It can be found less than a degree away from the naked-eye star [[16 Lyrae]], a 5th-magnitude [[Stellar classification#Class A|A-type]] subgiant<ref name="AbtMorrell1995">{{cite journal |last1=Abt |first1=H. A. |last2=Morrell |first2=N. I. |title=The Relation between Rotational Velocities and Spectral Peculiarities among A-Type Stars |journal=Astrophysical Journal Supplement |volume=99 |page=135 |date=1995 |doi=10.1086/192182 |bibcode=1995ApJS...99..135A
|doi-access=free }}</ref> located around 37 parsecs distant.<ref name="vanLeeuwen2007"/>

The brightest star not included in the asterism and the westernmost cataloged by Bayer or Flamsteed is [[Kappa Lyrae]], a typical red giant<ref name="KeenanMcNeil1989">{{cite journal |first1=P. |last1=Keenan |first2=R. |last2=McNeil |title=The Perkins catalog of revised MK types for the cooler stars |journal=Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series |volume=71 |pages=245–266 |date=October 1989 |bibcode=1989ApJS...71..245K |doi=10.1086/191373}}</ref> around 73 parsecs distant.<ref name="vanLeeuwen2007"/> Similar bright orange or red giants include the 4th-magnitude [[Theta Lyrae]],<ref name="MontesLópez-Santiago2001">{{cite journal |last1=Montes |first1=D. |last2=López-Santiago |first2=J. |last3=Gálvez |first3=M.C. |last4=Fernández-Figueroa |first4=M.J. |last5=De Castro |first5=E. |last6=Cornide |first6=M. |title=Late-type members of young stellar kinematic groups - I. Single stars |journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |volume=328 |issue=1 |date=2001 |pages=45–63 |bibcode=2001MNRAS.328...45M |doi=10.1046/j.1365-8711.2001.04781.x |doi-access=free |arxiv=astro-ph/0106537 |s2cid=55727428 }}</ref> [[Lambda Lyrae]],<ref name="Garcia1989">{{cite journal |last1=Garcia |first1=B. |title=A list of MK standard stars |journal=Bulletin d'Information du Centre de Données Stellaires |volume=36 |page=27 |date=1989 |bibcode=1989BICDS..36...27G}}</ref> and [[HD 173780]].<ref name="KeenanMcNeil1989"/> Lambda is located just south of Gamma, Theta is positioned in the east, and HD 173780, the brightest star in the constellation with no Bayer or Flamsteed designation, is more southernly. Just north of Theta and of almost exactly the same magnitude is [[Eta Lyrae]], a blue subgiant with a near-solar metal abundance.<ref name="Adelman1998">{{cite journal |last1=Adelman |first1=S. J. |title=Elemental abundance analyses with DAO spectrograms - XIX. The superficially normal B stars ζ Draconis, η Lyrae, 8 Cygni and 22 Cygni |journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |volume=296 |issue=4 |year=1998 |pages=856–862 |bibcode=1998MNRAS.296..856A |doi=10.1046/j.1365-8711.1998.01426.x|doi-access=free }}</ref> Also nearby is the faint [[HP Lyrae]], a [[post-AGB star|post-asymptotic giant branch (AGB) star]] that shows variability. The reason for its variability is still a mystery: first cataloged as an eclipsing binary, it was theorized to be an [[RV Tauri variable]] in 2002, but if so, it would be by far the hottest such variable discovered.<ref name="GraczykMikolajewski2002">{{cite journal |last1=Graczyk |first1=D. |last2=Mikolajewski |first2=M. |last3=Leedjarv |first3=L. |last4=Frackowiak |first4=S. M. |last5=Osiwala |first5=J. P. |last6=Puss |first6=A. |last7=Tomov |first7=T. |title=HP Lyr - Possibly the Hottest RV Tau Type Object |journal=Acta Astronomica |volume=52 |pages=293–304 |date=2002 |bibcode=2002AcA....52..293G |arxiv=astro-ph/0210448}}</ref>

In the extreme east is [[RR Lyrae]], the prototype of the large class of variables known as [[RR Lyrae variable]]s, which are pulsating variables similar to [[Cepheid]]s, but are evolved [[population II star]]s of spectral types A and F. Such stars are usually not found in a galaxy's [[thin disk]], but rather in the [[galactic halo]]. Such stars serve as [[standard candle]]s, and thus are a reliable way to calculate distances to the globular clusters in which they reside.<ref name="AAVSOVartypes"/> RR Lyrae itself varies between magnitudes 7 and 8 while exhibiting the [[Blazhko effect]].<ref name="NemecCohen2013">{{cite journal |last1=Nemec |first1=James M. |last2=Cohen |first2=Judith G. |last3=Ripepi |first3=Vincenzo |last4=Derekas |first4=Aliz |last5=Moskalik |first5=Pawel |last6=Sesar |first6=Branimir |last7=Chadid |first7=Merieme |last8=Bruntt |first8=Hans |title=Metal Abundances, Radial Velocities, and Other Physical Characteristics for the Rr Lyrae Stars in Thekeplerfield |journal=The Astrophysical Journal |volume=773 |issue=2 |date=2013 |pages=181 |bibcode=2013ApJ...773..181N |doi=10.1088/0004-637X/773/2/181 |arxiv=1307.5820 |s2cid=59324293 }}</ref> The easternmost star designated by [[John Flamsteed|Flamsteed]], [[19 Lyrae]], is also a small-amplitude variable, an [[Alpha2 Canum Venaticorum variable|Alpha<sup>2</sup> Canum Venaticorum variable]] with a period of just over one day.<ref name="BurkeBarr1981">{{cite journal |last1=Burke |first1=E. W. Jr. |last2=Barr |first2=T. H. |title=Photometric UBV period study of eight AP stars |journal=Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific |volume=93 |date=1981 |pages=344 |bibcode=1981PASP...93..344B |doi=10.1086/130836|doi-access=free }}</ref>

Another evolved star is the naked-eye variable [[XY Lyrae]], a red bright giant<ref name="KeenanMcNeil1989"/> just north of Vega that varies between 6th and 7th magnitudes over a period of 120 days.<ref name="PercyDunlop2001">{{Cite journal |last1=Percy |first1=J. R. |last2=Dunlop |first2=H. |last3=Kassim |first3=L. |last4=Thompson |first4=R. R. |title=Periods of 25 Pulsating Red Giants |journal=Information Bulletin on Variable Stars |issue=5041 |page=1 |date=2001 |volume=5041 |bibcode=2001IBVS.5041....1P}}</ref> Also just visible to the naked eye is the peculiar [[classical Cepheid]] [[V473 Lyrae]]. It is unique in that it is the only known Cepheid in the [[Milky Way]] to undergo periodic phase and amplitude changes, analogous to the Blazhko effect in RR Lyrae stars.<ref name="MolnarSzabados2014">{{cite journal |last1=Molnar |first1=L. |last2=Szabados |first2=L. |title=V473 Lyrae, a unique second-overtone Cepheid with two modulation cycles |journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |volume=442 |issue=4 |date=2014 |pages=3222–3234 |bibcode=2014MNRAS.442.3222M |doi=10.1093/mnras/stu1091 |doi-access=free |arxiv=1406.0494 |s2cid=118591859 }}</ref> At 1.5 days, its period was the shortest known for a classical Cepheid at the time of its discovery.<ref name="Breger1981">{{cite journal |last1=Breger |first1=M. |title=The unusual Cepheid HR 7308 with a variable amplitude |journal=The Astrophysical Journal |volume=249 |date=1981 |pages=666 |bibcode=1981ApJ...249..666B |doi=10.1086/159327}}</ref> [[W Lyrae|W]] and [[S Lyrae]] are two of the many [[Mira variable]]s in Lyra. W varies between 7th and 12th magnitudes over approximately 200 days,<ref name="IslesSaw1989">{{cite journal |last1=Isles |first1=J. E. |last2=Saw |first2=D. R. B. |title=Mira Stars - IV: R Cam, R Cas, W Cas, S Cep, T Cep, U Cyg, and S Del |journal=Journal of the British Astronomical Association |volume=99 |issue=6 |pages=275–281 |date=1989 |bibcode=1989JBAA...99..275I}}</ref> while S, slightly fainter, is a silicate [[carbon star]], likely of the [[Stellar classification#Class C|J-type]].<ref name="ChenWang2001">{{cite journal |last1=Chen |first1=P.-S. |last2=Wang |first2=X.-H. |title=IRAS 19111+2555(=S Lyr): A Possible Silicate Carbon Star |journal=Chinese Journal of Astronomy & Astrophysics |volume=1 |issue=4 |pages=344–348 |date=2001 |bibcode=2001ChJAA...1..344C |doi=10.1088/1009-9271/1/4/344}}</ref> Another evolved star is [[EP Lyrae]], a faint RV Tauri variable and an "extreme example" of a post-AGB star. It and a likely companion are surrounded by a circumstellar disk of material.<ref name="GielenVanWinckel2009">{{cite journal |last1=Gielen |first1=C. |last2=Van Winckel |first2=H. |last3=Matsuura |first3=M. |last4=Min |first4=M. |last5=Deroo |first5=P. |last6=Waters |first6=L. B. F. M. |last7=Dominik |first7=C. |title=Analysis of the infrared spectra of the peculiar post-AGB stars EP Lyrae and HD 52961 |journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics |volume=503 |issue=3 |date=2009 |pages=843–854 |bibcode=2009A&A...503..843G |doi=10.1051/0004-6361/200912060 |arxiv=0906.4718 |s2cid=1673092 }}</ref>

Rather close to Earth at a distance of only {{convert|16|pc|ly}} is [[Gliese 758]]. The sunlike primary star has a [[brown dwarf]] companion, the coldest to have been imaged around a sunlike star in thermal light when it was discovered in 2009.<ref name="ThalmannCarson2009">{{cite journal |last1=Thalmann |first1=C. |last2=Carson |first2=J. |last3=Janson |first3=M. |last4=Goto |first4=M. |last5=McElwain |first5=M. |last6=Egner |first6=S. |last7=Feldt |first7=M. |last8=Hashimoto |first8=J. |last9=Hayano |first9=Y. |last10=Henning |first10=T. |last11=Hodapp |first11=K. W. |last12=Kandori |first12=R. |last13=Klahr |first13=H. |last14=Kudo |first14=T. |last15=Kusakabe |first15=N. |last16=Mordasini |first16=C. |last17=Morino |first17=J.-I. |last18=Suto |first18=H. |last19=Suzuki |first19=R. |last20=Tamura |first20=M. |title=Discovery of the Coldest Imaged Companion of a Sun-Like Star |journal=The Astrophysical Journal |volume=707 |issue=2 |date=2009 |pages=L123–L127 |bibcode=2009ApJ...707L.123T |doi=10.1088/0004-637X/707/2/L123 |arxiv=0911.1127 |s2cid=116823073 }}</ref> Only slightly farther away is [[V478 Lyrae]], an eclipsing<ref name="HallSowell1989">{{cite journal |last1=Hall |first1=D. S. |last2=Sowell |first2=J. R. |last3=Henry |first3=G. W. |title=Discovery of Eclipses in the Chromospherically Active Binary V478 Lyrae=HD 178450 |journal=Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society |volume=21 |page=709 |date=1989 |bibcode=1989BAAS...21..709H}}</ref> [[RS Canum Venaticorum variable]] whose primary star shows active [[starspot]] activity.<ref name="Horne2006">{{cite journal |last=Horne |first=J. D. |title=V478 Lyrae Revisited: a Current Look at Eclipses and Star Spots |journal=The Journal of the American Association of Variable Star Observers |volume=34 |issue=2 |pages=177–187 |date=2006 |bibcode=2006JAVSO..34..177H}}</ref>

One of the most peculiar systems in Lyra is [[MV Lyrae]], a [[nova-like star]] consisting of a [[red dwarf]] and a [[white dwarf]].<ref name="SkillmanPatterson1995">{{cite journal |last1=Skillman |first1=David R. |last2=Patterson |first2=Joseph |last3=Thorstensen |first3=John R. |title=Superhumps in Cataclysmic Binaries. IV. MV Lyrae |journal=Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific |volume=107 |date=1995 |pages=545 |bibcode=1995PASP..107..545S |doi=10.1086/133590|doi-access=free }}</ref> Originally classified as a [[VY Sculptoris star]] due to spending most time at maximum brightness, since around 1979 the system has been dominantly at minimum brightness, with periodic outbursts.<ref name="PavlenkoShugarov1999">{{cite journal |last1=Pavlenko |first1=E. P. |last2=Shugarov |first2=S. Y. |title=Photometric study of the nova-like variable MV Lyrae during an enormous outburst in 1997 |journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics |volume=343 |pages=909–915 |date=1999 |bibcode=1999A&A...343..909P}}</ref> Its nature is still not fully understood.<ref name="LinnellSzkody2005">{{cite journal |last1=Linnell |first1=Albert P. |last2=Szkody |first2=Paula |last3=Gansicke |first3=Boris |last4=Long |first4=Knox S. |last5=Sion |first5=Edward M. |last6=Hoard |first6=D. W. |last7=Hubeny |first7=Ivan |title=MV Lyrae in Low, Intermediate, and High States |journal=The Astrophysical Journal |volume=624 |issue=2 |date=2005 |pages=923–933 |bibcode=2005ApJ...624..923L |doi=10.1086/429143 |arxiv=astro-ph/0612696 |s2cid=9017292 }}</ref> Another outbursting star is [[AY Lyrae]], an [[SU Ursae Majoris variable|SU Ursae Majoris]]-type [[dwarf nova]] that has undergone several [[superoutburst]]s.<ref name="SzymanskiUndalski1987">{{cite journal |last1=Szymanski |first1=M. |last2=Udalski |first2=A. |title=AY Lyrae Superoutburst Photometry |journal=Information Bulletin on Variable Stars |volume=3105 |pages=1 |date=1987 |bibcode=1987IBVS.3105....1S}}</ref> Of the same type is [[V344 Lyrae]], notable for an extremely short period between superoutbursts coupled with one of the highest amplitudes for such a period.<ref name="KatoPoyner2002">{{cite journal |last1=Kato |first1=T. |last2=Poyner |first2=G. |last3=Kinnunen |first3=T. |title=V344 Lyr: an unusual large-amplitude SU UMa-type dwarf nova with a short supercycle |journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |volume=330 |issue=1 |date=2002 |pages=53–57 |bibcode=2002MNRAS.330...53K |doi=10.1046/j.1365-8711.2002.05015.x |doi-access=free |arxiv=astro-ph/0110317 |s2cid=16338791 }}</ref> The true [[nova]] [[HR Lyrae]] flared in 1919 to a maximum magnitude of 6.5, over 9.5 magnitudes higher than in quiescence. Some of its characteristics are similar to those of [[recurring nova]]e.<ref name="ShearsPoyner2007">{{cite journal |last1=Shears |first1=J. |last2=Poyner |first2=G. |title=HR Lyrae (Nova Lyr 1919): from outburst to active quiescence |journal=Journal of the British Astronomical Association |volume=117 |issue=3 |pages=136–141 |date=2007 |bibcode=2007JBAA..117..136S |arxiv=astro-ph/0701719 }}</ref>