Body Double: Understanding the Astrophysics of a Newly-Discovered Multi-Planet Binary Star System
Tuesday, September 11, 2012 - 08:01
in Astronomy & Space
Last month astronomers announced the first discovery of multiple planets orbiting a pair of stars. Binary star systems, which comprise two stars orbiting around a common point, are very common--about half of sun-size stars are thought to be members of binary star systems. But it was only in 2011 that astronomers reported the first confirmed instance of a binary system with even a single planet. The newly discovered system, named Kepler 47, consists of a star about the size of the sun and a smaller companion, orbited by two planets. [More]