A huge, bright star in a late stage of stellar evolution. Hydrogen in the central core is exhausted, and that remaining in the outer layers burns in shells. As a consequence the star balloons outwards. This will be the fate of the Sun, about five thousand million years in the future.
More massive stars only visit this luminosity class on their way to becoming much brighter bright giants or supergiants. Well-known giant stars of various colours include:Regor (γ Velorum): a blue (O-type) giant Alcyone (η Tauri): a blue-white (B-type) giant; the brightest of the Pleiades Thuban (α Draconis): a white (A-type) giant σ Octantis: a yellow-white (F-type) giant; the southern pole star Capella (α Aurigae): a yellow (G-type) giant Pollux (β Geminorum): an orange (K-type) giant Mira (ο Ceti): a red (M-type) giant
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