Thanks to the Hubble Telescope, astronomers now have photographic proof that the North Star, formerly known as Polaris, has two stellar companions.The first, Polaris B, has been known since 1780 and can easily be seen with even a smaller telescope; the presence of the second, Polaris Ab, has been inferred but eluded direct detection because it was close to Polaris and relatively faint.
The North Star is a super-giant more than 2,000 times brighter than the sun, while its newly photographed second companion is a dwarf star just 2 billion miles from it, astronomers said.
7 comments:
that dot is a star? Sure it's not dust on the lens?
which dwarf star is it, by the way? Sleepy? Doc?
(*)>
It does look like a speck. Was one of the dwarves named Speck?
no, it was Spock
The wonders of the universe never cease to amaze. There's no way of knowing all there is to know about it.
rgmb: you are on my wavelength!
j.d.: I agree. I find that whenever I'm down, I ponder the mysteries of the universe and it never fails to cheer me up. I find comfort in that.
cube,well then I'll have to return with more frequency ; )
I'm always on the prowl for new navigation skills...
Good to have you back, QQ ;-)
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