G 196-3
Encyclopedia
G 196-3 is a young low-mass M dwarf type
star
which is about 100 million years old. The star is located within the Ursa Major constellation
about 50.2 light years
away from the Earth
. During observations by Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias
in Tenerife
, Spain
in 1998, a substellar-mass object was discovered to orbit approximately 300 astronomical units (AU)
from the star. It was detected using direct imaging.
confirmed the presence of a substellar object which was named G 196-3B. The Further observations confirmed the discovery when the team of Rafael Rebolo obtained R & I broadband photometry
on March 19, 1998. The TCS Telescope showed its very cool nature in near-infrared (K Band). The comparison of the optical and infrared magnitudes including dust condensation has allowed astronomer
s to conclude that the substellar object was 25–10+15 Jupiter masses or simply 25 masses that of the Jovian-planet Jupiter
. This was the second discovery of a brown dwarf
that was found around a low-mass star whose age was relatively young. The separation of the star and the substellar object has suggested that both were parts of a fragment from a collapsing cloud
although another possible scenario suggests that it originated from a dissipated protoplanetary disk
.
Stellar classification
In astronomy, stellar classification is a classification of stars based on their spectral characteristics. The spectral class of a star is a designated class of a star describing the ionization of its chromosphere, what atomic excitations are most prominent in the light, giving an objective measure...
star
Star
A star is a massive, luminous sphere of plasma held together by gravity. At the end of its lifetime, a star can also contain a proportion of degenerate matter. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth...
which is about 100 million years old. The star is located within the Ursa Major constellation
Ursa Major
Ursa Major , also known as the Great Bear, is a constellation visible throughout the year in most of the northern hemisphere. It can best be seen in April...
about 50.2 light years
Light-year
A light-year, also light year or lightyear is a unit of length, equal to just under 10 trillion kilometres...
away from the Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
. During observations by Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias
Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias
The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias is an astrophysical research institute located in Tenerife in the Canary Islands, Spain. It was founded in 1975 at the University of La Laguna.It operates two astronomical observatories in the Canary Islands:...
in Tenerife
Tenerife
Tenerife is the largest and most populous island of the seven Canary Islands, it is also the most populated island of Spain, with a land area of 2,034.38 km² and 906,854 inhabitants, 43% of the total population of the Canary Islands. About five million tourists visit Tenerife each year, the...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
in 1998, a substellar-mass object was discovered to orbit approximately 300 astronomical units (AU)
Astronomical unit
An astronomical unit is a unit of length equal to about or approximately the mean Earth–Sun distance....
from the star. It was detected using direct imaging.
Substellar companion
Observations of the substellar object were performed on January 25, 1998 where a faint red companion was present 16.2 arc seconds southwest of the star. A comparison of images taken at different wavelengths was done using low-intermediate-resolution spectroscopySpectroscopy
Spectroscopy is the study of the interaction between matter and radiated energy. Historically, spectroscopy originated through the study of visible light dispersed according to its wavelength, e.g., by a prism. Later the concept was expanded greatly to comprise any interaction with radiative...
confirmed the presence of a substellar object which was named G 196-3B. The Further observations confirmed the discovery when the team of Rafael Rebolo obtained R & I broadband photometry
Photometry (astronomy)
Photometry is a technique of astronomy concerned with measuring the flux, or intensity of an astronomical object's electromagnetic radiation...
on March 19, 1998. The TCS Telescope showed its very cool nature in near-infrared (K Band). The comparison of the optical and infrared magnitudes including dust condensation has allowed astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
s to conclude that the substellar object was 25–10+15 Jupiter masses or simply 25 masses that of the Jovian-planet Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
. This was the second discovery of a brown dwarf
Brown dwarf
Brown dwarfs are sub-stellar objects which are too low in mass to sustain hydrogen-1 fusion reactions in their cores, which is characteristic of stars on the main sequence. Brown dwarfs have fully convective surfaces and interiors, with no chemical differentiation by depth...
that was found around a low-mass star whose age was relatively young. The separation of the star and the substellar object has suggested that both were parts of a fragment from a collapsing cloud
Molecular cloud
A molecular cloud, sometimes called a stellar nursery if star formation is occurring within, is a type of interstellar cloud whose density and size permits the formation of molecules, most commonly molecular hydrogen ....
although another possible scenario suggests that it originated from a dissipated protoplanetary disk
Protoplanetary disk
A protoplanetary disk is a rotating circumstellar disk of dense gas surrounding a young newly formed star, a T Tauri star, or Herbig Ae/Be star...
.