WISEPC J121756.91+162640.2 (designation abbreviated to WISE 1217+1626, or WISE J1217+1626) is a binary brown dwarf system of spectral classes T9 + Y0,[2] located in constellation Coma Berenices at approximately 33 light-years from Earth.[5]
Observation data Epoch MJD 55549.01[1] Equinox J2000[1] | |
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Constellation | Coma Berenices |
Right ascension | 12h 17m 56.96s[1] |
Declination | 16° 26′ 39.98″[1] |
Characteristics | |
Whole system | |
Apparent magnitude (Y (MKO filter system) | 18.38±0.04[2] |
Apparent magnitude (J (2MASS filter system) | >18.52[1] |
Apparent magnitude (J (MKO filter system) | 17.83±0.02[1][2] |
Apparent magnitude (H (2MASS filter system) | >17.50[1] |
Apparent magnitude (H (MKO filter system) | 18.18±0.05[1][2] |
Apparent magnitude (KS (2MASS filter system) | >16.64[1] |
Apparent magnitude (K (MKO filter system) | 18.80±0.04[2] |
Component A | |
Spectral type | T8.5[3] |
Apparent magnitude (Y (MKO filter system) | 18.59±0.04[2] |
Apparent magnitude (J (MKO filter system) | 17.98±0.02[2] |
Apparent magnitude (H (MKO filter system) | 18.31±0.05[2] |
Apparent magnitude (K (MKO filter system) | 18.94±0.04[2] |
Component B | |
Spectral type | Y0-0.5[3] |
Apparent magnitude (Y (MKO filter system) | 20.26±0.04[2] |
Apparent magnitude (J (MKO filter system) | 20.08±0.03[2] |
Apparent magnitude (H (MKO filter system) | 20.51±0.06[2] |
Apparent magnitude (K (MKO filter system) | 21.10±0.12[2] |
Astrometry | |
Proper motion (μ) | RA: 760±11[4] mas/yr Dec.: 1278±10[4] mas/yr |
Parallax (π) | 113 ± 12 mas[4] |
Distance | approx. 29 ly (approx. 8.8 pc) |
Orbit[2] | |
Primary | A |
Companion | B |
Period (P) | 130+230 −30 yr |
Details | |
Component A | |
Mass | 30[3] MJup |
Luminosity (bolometric) | 10−5.95 ± 0.18[2] L☉ |
Surface gravity (log g) | 5.07±0.05[2] cgs |
Temperature | 575±25[3] K |
Age | 6±2[3] Gyr |
Component B | |
Mass | 22[3] MJup |
Luminosity (bolometric) | 10−6.79 ± 0.18[2] L☉ |
Surface gravity (log g) | 4.77±0.05[2] cgs |
Temperature | 450±50[3] K |
Position (relative to A) | |
Component | B |
Epoch of observation | UT 2012 January 29 |
Angular distance | 758.2±1.4 mas [2] |
Position angle | 14.50±0.13° [2] |
Observed separation (projected) | ~ 8 AU [2] |
Other designations | |
Database references | |
SIMBAD | J121756.90+162640.8 data |
WISE 1217+1626 A was discovered in 2011 by J. Davy Kirkpatrick et al. from data, collected by Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) Earth-orbiting satellite — NASA infrared-wavelength 40 cm (16 in) space telescope, which mission lasted from December 2009 to February 2011. In 2011 Kirkpatrick et al. published a paper in The Astrophysical Journal Supplement, where they presented discovery of 98 new found by WISE brown dwarf systems with components of spectral types M, L, T and Y, among which also was WISE 1217+1626.[1][~ 1]
Initial estimate of WISE 1217+1626' spectral type (before discovery of its binarity) was T9[1][6] (the same as the component's A type estimate made after this discovery).[2]
WISE 1217+1626 B was discovered in 2012 by Liu et al. with laser guide star (LGS) adaptive optics (AO) system of the 10-m Keck II Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, using infrared camera NIRC2 (the observations were made on 2012 January 29 (UT)). On 2012 April 1 (UT) Liu et al. observed WISE J1217+1626AB using the near-IR camera NIRI on the Gemini-North 8.1-m telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii and the binary was marginally resolved. On 12 April 2012 (UT) they obtained resolved spectroscopy of WISE J1217+1626AB with the near-IR spectrograph NIRSPEC again on the Keck II Telescope. In 2012 Liu et al. published a paper in The Astrophysical Journal where they presented results of observations with Keck II LGS-AO of three brown dwarf binary systems, binarity of one of which was known before, and binarity of the other two, including WISE 1217+1626, was first presented in this paper.[2]
Using three models, Liu et al. calculated physical properties of WISE 1217+1626 components for ages of 1 and 5 billion years.[2] Later, models corresponding to age of the system equal to 1 billion years, were found to be poorly fitting and were discarded.[3]
From Burrows et al. (2003) models and M(J):
Component and assumed age | Mass, MJup | Teff, K | log g, cm/s2 | P, yr |
---|---|---|---|---|
A (for 5 Gyr) | 29±3 | 530±30 | 4.95±0.05 | |
B (for 5 Gyr) | 18.4±1.0 | 402±11 | 4.68±0.03 | 130+230 −30 |
From Lyon/COND models and M(J):
Component and assumed age | Mass, MJup | Teff, K | log g, cm/s2 | P, yr |
---|---|---|---|---|
A (for 5 Gyr) | 8.3±0.9 | 660±40 | 5.07±0.05 | |
B (for 5 Gyr) | 20±2 | 470±30 | 4.77±0.05 | 120+220 −30 |
From Lyon/COND models and Lbol:
Component and assumed age | Mass, MJup | Teff, K | log g, cm/s2 | P, yr |
---|---|---|---|---|
A (for 5 Gyr) | 33±5 | 630±70 | 5.04±0.09 | |
B (for 5 Gyr) | 13±3 | 370±50 | 4.54±0.11 | 130+240 −30 |
Both components have a thin cloud layers in atmosphere. Despite being cold enough to have a chloride and sulfide clouds in atmosphere, component B atmosphere is not as cloudy as expected, possibly because of the system been metal-poor.[3]
The other two brown dwarf binary systems, observed by Liu et al. with Keck II LGS-AO in 2012:[2]
Constellation of Coma Berenices | |||||||||||||
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