PSR B1620-26

The location of PSR B1620-26 (circled)

PSR B1620-26 is a binary star located at the distance of 12,400 light-years, It is located in the Globular cluster Messier 4. It is located in the constellation Scorpius.

System

Viewed as a binary star system, PSR B1620-26 is very far away, being 3,800 parsecs (12,400light-years) outside the core of Messier 4. It consists if two stars, PSR B1620-26 A is a pulsar and PSR B1620-26 B is a white dwarf (which form a binary star system together) and a exoplanet PSR B1620-26 b which according to astronomers is the oldest planet in the universe.

White Dwarf

PSR B1620-26 B is 0.34 solar masses and orbits the pulsar every 191 days.

Planetary system

PSR B1620-26 b was discovered in the early 1990s. The planet was announced by Stephen Thorsett and his collaborators in 1993.

The PSR B1620-26 planetary system
Companion

(in order from star)

 Mass Semimajor axis

(AU)

 Orbital period

(days)

 Eccentricity Inclination Radius
b 2.5 ± 1 MJ 23 ~36,500 low 55−8+14° —
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