pith. sign in

arxiv: 0911.1127 · v1 · pith:CGU6EQEEnew · submitted 2009-11-05 · 🌌 astro-ph.EP

Discovery of the Coldest Imaged Companion of a Sun-Like Star

classification 🌌 astro-ph.EP
keywords stararoundcoldestcompanioncompanionsdetecteddirectdiscovery
0
0 comments X
read the original abstract

We present the discovery of a brown dwarf or possible planet at a projected separation of 1.9" = 29 AU around the star GJ 758, placing it between the separations at which substellar companions are expected to form by core accretion (~5 AU) or direct gravitational collapse (typically >100 AU). The object was detected by direct imaging of its thermal glow with Subaru/HiCIAO. At 10-40 times the mass of Jupiter and a temperature of 550-640 K, GJ 758 B constitutes one of the few known T-type companions, and the coldest ever to be imaged in thermal light around a Sun-like star. Its orbit is likely eccentric and of a size comparable to Pluto's orbit, possibly as a result of gravitational scattering or outward migration. A candidate second companion is detected at 1.2" at one epoch.

This paper has not been read by Pith yet.

discussion (0)

Sign in with ORCID, Apple, or X to comment. Anyone can read and Pith papers without signing in.