HD 217107 c

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HD 217107 c[1]
Extrasolar planet List of extrasolar planets
Orbital elements
Semimajor axis (a) 4.41 ± 0.21 AU
Eccentricity (e) 0.537 ± 0.026
Orbital period (P) 3352 ± 157 d (9.18 ± 0.43 y)
Angular distance (θ) 119.189 mas
Longitude of
periastron
(ω) 164°
Time of periastron (T0) 2,450,921 ± 84 JD
Semi-amplitude (K) 34 ± 20 m/s
Physical characteristics
Mass (m) >2.5 ± 0.48 MJ
Discovery information
Discovery date November 24, 1998,
and confirmed on
June 24, 2005
Discoverer(s) Marcy et al.
Detection method Doppler Spectroscopy
Discovery status Confirmed

HD 217107 c is a Jupiter-like extrasolar planet orbiting the star HD 217107 about every eight years. It is the second planet to be discovered orbiting the star, after HD 217107 b which orbits the star in a much smaller orbit. HD 217107 c's existence was hypothesised in 2002 and confirmed in 2005, when radial velocity studies of the star indicated another, more distant and massive companion orbiting the star. Its mass and orbital parameters remain highly uncertain.

Contents

[edit] Discovery

A study of the radial velocity of HD 217107 carried out in 1998 revealed that its motion along the line of sight varied over a 7.1 day cycle, indicating the presence of a planet in orbit around the star. The planet was designated HD 217107 b, and was found to be somewhat heavier than Jupiter, and orbiting extremely close to the parent star in an orbit with quite a large eccentricity [2].

Most planets with orbital periods of less than 10 days have almost circular orbits, and its discoverers proposed that the high eccentricity of HD 217107 b's orbit could be due to the gravitational influence of a second planet in the system at a distance of several astronomical units (AU)[3]. Confirmation of the existence of the second planet followed in 2005, and it was designated HD 217107 c.

[edit] Orbit

Observations of the star's radial velocity variations indicate a period of about 8 years, and HD 217107 c's mass is thought to be at least twice that of Jupiter in a very eccentric orbit with a semimajor axis of about 4 AU [1]. Large uncertainties still exist in these measurements, though, due to the length of the orbital period and the distance of HD 217107 c from its parent star.

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Vogt et al. (2005). "Five New Multicomponent Planetary Systems". The Astrophysical Journal 632 (1): 638 – 658. doi:10.1086/432901. 
  2. ^ Fischer et al. (1999). "Planetary Companions around Two Solar-Type Stars: HD 195019 and HD 217107". Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific 111 (755): 50 – 56. doi:10.1086/316304. 
  3. ^ Fischer et al. (2002). "Planetary Companions to HD 12661, HD 92788, and HD 38529 and Variations in Keplerian Residuals of Extrasolar Planets". The Astrophysical Journal 551 (2): 1107 – 1118. doi:10.1086/320224. 


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