In the constellation of Centaurus found unusual planet with three suns – BBC

Astronomers have discovered an exoplanet in the constellation Centaurus with three “suns”. Article about the opening left in the scientific journal Science. Located 320 light years from Earth, HD 131399Ab planet is a gas giant mass in four mass of Jupiter.

The planet that revolves around the brightest of the three stars, 80% more massive than the sun, the other two stars quickly They revolve around each other, and they all take the movement around a common center of mass. This geometry bodies leads to the fact that an imaginary observer on this planet can see at a glance up to three suns in the sky, depending on the time of year. “You could see the sunrise and sunset of three stars, or see the sunrise and sunset of individual stars,” – said co-discoverer Daniel Apai University of Arizona

According to him, as all three stars have a different temperature, different. and their color, because the planet can be seen rising bluish, yellow and red light. Astronomers clarify that this is not the first planet that exists in a system of three stars. However, it is quite different from distant orbit around a nearby star such that the planet can “feel” the impact and the other two stars. “Whether its orbit is slightly more distant, the two stars could pull off this planet” – said the scientist. The planet was detected spectroscopically on the VLT telescope in Chile.