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PSR B1620-26
A white dwarf companion in orbit around a millisecond pulsar, (PSR 1620-26) located within the globular cluster M4 (NGC 6121). Measurements using the pulsar timing method indicate that the white dwarf is orbited by three massive planets.1, 2
| Pulsar | |
|---|---|
| Distance | 12,400 light-years (3.8 kpc) |
| Period | 11 milliseconds (= 90 rev./sec.) |
| Planets | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| a | b | c | |
| Mass (Jupiter = 1) | 1.2 | 3.4 | 6.7 |
| Semimajor axis | ~10 | 30 | 64 |
| Orbital period (years) | 61.8 | 129 | 389 |
| Eccentricity | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.5 |
References
- Rasio, F. A. "New Evidence for a Planet or Brown Dwarf in Orbit Around PSR M1620-26." In A. Olinto et al., eds., Proceedings of the Texas Symposium on Relativistic Astrophysics, Annals of the New York Academy of Science (1998).
- Thorsett, S., Arzoumanian, Z., Camilo, F., and Lyne, A. "The Triple Pulsar System PSR B1620-26 in M4," Astrophysical Journal (submitted 1999).
Related categories
• NOTABLE STARS• EXTRASOLAR PLANETS AND SUBSTELLAR OBJECTS
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