A team of scientists from the University of Arizona discovered a strange world that is not located very far from ours.
In a research published online, the astronomers speak about a giant planet – HD 131399Ab which surrounded by not one but three Sun like stars.
Confirmation of existence of the planet also leads to another interesting fact about that planet in question would experience either constant day light or triple sunrises and sunsets.
According to the study, this strange planet has the largest orbit when compared to other exoplanets identified so far. The study was published online by the team of astronomers. It is located in Centaurus constellation which also has Proxima Centuari – which is the nearest star to our Sun.
Image shows a part of the constellation Centaurus (The Centaur) centred on the position of HD 131399, which appears as a star of moderate brightness at the centre. Image courtesy: ESO/Digitized Sky Survey 2
“We found the planet using sophisticated imaging equipment on the Very Large Telescope in Chile. This allows us to correct for the image distortion (twinkle), introduced by the Earth’s atmosphere, and also to block out most of the starlight so that we may see the faint planet next to it. This technique is called direct imaging, and is one of the most challenging observations possible in modern astronomy,” said Kevin Wagner – first author of the paper – was quoted by The Hindu.
Located about 340 light years from Earth in the constellation Centaurus, HD 131399Ab is believed to be about 16 million years old, making it one of the youngest exoplanets discovered to date.
The researchers used the Spectro-Polarimetric High-Contrast Exoplanet Research Instrument (SPHERE) installed on the Very Large Telescope operated by the European Southern Observatory in Chile to track down the strange world.
Planets with with multi-star system helps scientists to learn more about planet formation in cataclysmic scenarios.
