Stars with Exoplanets: 1RXS J160929.1-210524 (original) (raw)

This young star obviously has a companion, which probably is the smallest object outside the solar system fotographed so far. Then this is the first photo of an exoplanet around a sunlike star. The planet with about 8 times the mass of Jupiter and 1.7 times its diameter is with 330 AU very far away from its star. It is luminous by itself, because it still has a temperature of 1800 Kelvin, but it will cool down slowly.

Constellation: Scorpius
Age: 5 million years
Distance: 490 light-years
Spectral class: K7
Mass: 0.85 * Sun
Diameter: 1.35 * Sun

Back: List of Exoplanets

09/17/2008

The planet is to the upper left.
Photo: Gemini Observatory