Results from The COPAINS Pilot Survey: four new brown dwarfs and a high companion detection rate for accelerating stars

23. 02 2022

Brown dwarfs

Discovery of binary brown dwarf with the biggest separation

Brown dwarfs are often found in pairs. However their low gravity is causing them to break away from each other more often than binary stars. Astronomers now found the brown dwarf pair with the widest separation of 129 AU (about 4 times the distance between Neptune and the Sun).

01. 12 2021

Brown dwarfs

Lithium burning occurs in brown dwarfs more massive than 52 Jupiters

Astronomers found out long time ago that some brown dwarfs contain lithium a some don't. The difference is in their mass and in a new study scientists led by E. L. Martín present their estimate of the lithium limit. Brown dwarfs over 52 jupiter masses should be able to burn lithium and deplete it rather quickly after their creation.

14. 11 2021

Exoplanets

Two small exoplanets discovered around nearby star LHS 1678, also maybe a brown dwarf

Astronomers discovered 2 new exoplanets in orbit around star LHS 1678. Both of them are smaller than Earth, although one is more massive. The system of the star LHS 1678 might also contain a brown dwarf and third exoplanet, but those have not been confirmed with observations from another observatory.

26. 10 2021

Exomoons

Characterizing the protolunar disk of the accreting companion GQ Lupi B