Astronomers report finding 27 potential “circumbinary” planets—worlds that orbit two stars—more than doubling the number of such candidates previously identified. While about 18 circumbinary planets had been known, more than 6,000 exoplanets are known to orbit single stars. The new candidates are located roughly 650 to 18,000 light-years from Earth. The work focuses on star systems where the two stars eclipse each other, producing precisely timed changes. Researchers use a method called “apsidal precession” to detect a wobble in these eclipsing binaries that could indicate an additional third body. After accounting for other explanations tied to the stars’ rotation and gravitational effects, the team finds 36 systems among 1,590 where the behavior suggests something else is present; 27 of those objects could have planet-like masses. The study uses data from NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), launched in 2018. The team notes that further observations—particularly spectroscopic measurements of the objects’ light—are needed to confirm whether each candidate is truly a planet rather than a brown dwarf or a star.
Astronomers identify 27 candidate circumbinary planets orbiting two stars
Astronomers report finding 27 potential “circumbinary” planets—worlds that orbit two stars—more than doubling the number of such candidates previously identified. While about 18 circumbinary planets h...
- Researchers identify 27 candidate circumbinary planets that orbit two stars.
- The candidates more than double the previously identified number of circumbinary planets (about 18 prior).
- The targets are eclipse-prone binary star systems, analyzed using timing changes linked to apsidal precession.
- From 1,590 systems, 36 show signals consistent with a third body; 27 could be planet-mass objects.
- TESS data are used, and spectroscopy is needed to confirm whether each object is a planet rather than a brown dwarf or star.
Astronomers have identified 27 potential new circumbinary planets -- worlds that orbit two stars, like Star Wars' Tatooine. "To date, only about 18 circumbinary planets ... had been identified in the universe," reports the Guardian. "More than 6,000 planets have been discovered that orbit single stars, like Earth does around the sun." The Guardian reports: In a timely publication for May 4, also known as Star Wars Day, scientists have identified nearly 30 more candidate planets, whose distances range from 650 to 18,000 light years away from Earth. [...] More than half of the stars in the universe exist in binary or multiple star systems. The researchers instead used a method known as "apsidal precession," searching for a wobble between stars that orbit around and eclipse each other. "If we monitor the exact timing of these eclipses ... that can tell us that there's something else going on in the system," said Margo Thornton, the study's lead author and a PhD candidate at UNSW. After eliminating other factors such as the rotation and gravitational pull of the two stars, the team identified 36 star systems out of 1,590 whose behavior could only be explained by a third body. For "27 of those objects, it is possible that they are planet mass," Thornton said. More research into their spectra -- the light they emit -- was needed to formally confirm them as circumbinary planets, she said. "It's just a matter of: what is the mass of it? Is it a planet? Is it a brown dwarf? Is it a star?" The team discovered the potential planets -- which likely range from Neptune-sized to ten times heavier than Jupiter -- using data from Nasa's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, a planet-hunting space telescope that launched in 2018. The research was published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Read more of this story at Slashdot.
3 months agoOn ‘Star Wars day’, researchers more than double the number of potential known ‘circumbinary’ planets like the fictional Tatooine, home to Luke SkywalkerAstronomers have discovered 27 new potential planets that orbit two stars, like the fictional desert planet Tatooine from the Star Wars universe.To date, only about 18 circumbinary planets – which orbit around two stars – had been identified in the universe. More than 6,000 planets have been discovered that orbit single stars, like Earth does around the sun. Continue reading...
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