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2007:1230

51 Pegasi
This bright, yellow dwarf star is one of the first systems discovered to have a planet. The year was 1995. If scientists are right about the companion to HD 114762 being a brown dwarf (1989), then the planet for 51 Pegasi becomes the first planet to be discovered outside the Solar System.

There is some disagreement about the classification of 51 Pegasi. Various sources report it as G4 V, G2 V+, or G2 IV. More recent data suggests that 51 Peg has begun to enter old age, leaving the main sequence behind. So we accept the spectral type of G2 IV. This star's "red-hot Jupiter" is close enough to its sun, and the orbit circular enough not to interfere with the past formation of an Earth-like world.

[star system vitals] System Vitals
Including temperature, mass, radius, and more.

 

[sky map and alien skies] Sky Map and Alien Skies
How to find the star system in our skies, plus what the night skies look like there.

 

[3D view of nearby stars] 3D View
Where to find the star system in relation to its neighbors.

 

[extrasolar planets] Planets
Specs on any known planets, plus the system's "eco-zone" — where Earth-like worlds might exist.

 


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