You're right to be confused! The Sun's brightness is not represented by two different numbers. There's a misunderstanding in the way you're presenting the information. Here's why:

* -26.73 refers to the Sun's apparent magnitude, which is a measure of how bright an object *appears* from Earth. The lower the apparent magnitude, the brighter the object.

* 4.83 likely refers to the Sun's absolute magnitude, which is a measure of how bright an object would appear if it were located at a standard distance of 10 parsecs (about 32.6 light-years) away.

It's important to note:

* Apparent magnitude depends on the distance to the object. The closer an object is to Earth, the brighter it appears.

* Absolute magnitude is a standardized measure that allows us to compare the intrinsic brightness of different stars, regardless of their distance from Earth.

So, the Sun has an apparent magnitude of -26.73 because it's our closest star. Its absolute magnitude is 4.83, indicating its intrinsic brightness compared to other stars.