83 Leonis

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

83 Leonis (abbreviated 83 Leo) is a wide binary star system in the constellation Leo. It consists of two orange stars cooler than our Sun. The primary is an orange subgiant star, and the secondary is an orange dwarf star. The two stars are separated by at least 515 AU.

In 2005 a planet[1] was announced orbiting the secondary star. There is also an optical component which appears close to the stars because of our line-of-sight.

Contents

[edit] The system

83 Leonis A/B
Observation data
Equinox 2000
Constellation Leo
Right ascension 11h 26m 45.32s
11h 26m 46.28s
Declination +3° 0' 47.18"
+3° 0' 22.78"
Apparent magnitude (V) 6.49/7.57
Distance 57.61/58.64 ly
(17.67/17.99 pc)
Spectral type K0IV/K2V
Other designations
Wolf 393, GJ 429, HD 99491, BD+03°2502/3, HIP 55846, HR 4414

The primary component, 83 Leonis A, is a 6th magnitude star. It is not visible to the unaided eye, but easily visible with small binoculars. The star is classified as a subgiant, meaning that it has ceased fusing hydrogen in its core and started to evolve towards red gianthood.

The secondary component, 83 Leonis B, is an 8th magnitude orange dwarf, somewhat less massive (0.88 MSun), smaller and cooler than our Sun. [2] It is visible only with binoculars or better equipment. Components A and B share common proper motion, which confirms them as a physical pair. The projected separation between the stars is 515 AU, but the true separation may be much higher. [3]

There is yet another, magnitude 14.4 component listed in the Washington Double Star Catalog. However, this star is moving into a different direction and is therefore not a true member of the 83 Leonis system.

[edit] The planet

83 Leonis Bb [4]
Extrasolar planet Lists of extrasolar planets
Orbital elements
Semimajor axis (a) 0.1232±0.0071 AU
Eccentricity (e) 0.254±0.092
Orbital period (P) 17.0431±0.047 d
Inclination (i)  ?°
Longitude of
periastron
(ω) 219±22°
Time of periastron (τ) 2,450,468.7±1.4 JD
Physical characteristics
Mass (m) >0.109±0.013 MJ
Radius (r)  ? RJ
Density (ρ)  ? kg/m3
Temperature (T)  ? K
Discovery information
Discovery date 2005
Discoverer(s) Marcy, Butler,
Vogt et al.
Detection method Radial velocity
Discovery status Published

83 Leonis Bb is an extrasolar planet orbiting the secondary star. The planet was discovered in 2005 by the California and Carnegie Planet Search team, who use the radial velocity method to detect planets. It is one of the smallest planets detected so far, having mass less than half that of Saturn. It orbits in a circular but a very close orbit around the star, completing one orbit in about 17 days.

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ *G. Marcy et al. (2005). "Five New Extrasolar Planets". The Astrophysical Journal 619: 570-584. 
  2. ^ The Planet Around HD 99492. California & Carnegie Planet Search. Retrieved on 2006-05-09.
  3. ^ Raghavan, D.; Henry, T. J. (2006). "Two Suns in The Sky: Stellar Multiplicity in Exoplanet Systems". The Astrophysical Journal (submitted).  (preprint)
  4. ^ Butler, R. et al. (2006). "Catalog of Nearby Exoplanets". The Astrophysical Journal 646: 505 – 522.  (web Preprint)
In other languages