OGLE-2003-BLG-235L (MOA-2003-BLG-53L) is a star in the
constellation
A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms Asterism (astronomy), a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object.
The origins of the e ...
of
Sagittarius. The first
gravitational microlensing event for which a planet orbiting the lens was detected around this star. The event occurred in during July 2003. Two groups observed and independently detected the event: the
Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment (OGLE) and the
Microlensing Observations in Astrophysics (MOA), hence, the double designation.
It is an
orange dwarf star of spectral type K, which is accompanied by a
giant planet.
Lens system
OGLE-2003-BLG-235L and MOA-2003-BLG-53L is the designation given to the star in the lens system.
In 2004, analysis of the light curve produced as it passed in front of the source star allowed detection of an
exoplanet
An exoplanet or extrasolar planet is a planet outside the Solar System. The first possible evidence of an exoplanet was noted in 1917 but was not recognized as such. The first confirmation of detection occurred in 1992. A different planet, init ...
orbiting the star with a mass 0.0039 times that of the host star (this would put it in the
jovian
Jovian is the adjectival form of Jupiter and may refer to:
* Jovian (emperor) (Flavius Iovianus Augustus), Roman emperor (363–364 AD)
* Jovians and Herculians, Roman imperial guard corps
* Jovian (lemur), a Coquerel's sifaka known for ''Zoboomafo ...
mass range). The star was originally assumed to be a
red dwarf
''Red Dwarf'' is a British science fiction comedy franchise created by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor, which primarily consists of a television sitcom that aired on BBC Two between 1988 and 1999, and on Dave since 2009, gaining a cult following. T ...
star, since they are the most common type of star in the galaxy.
By 2006, the source and lens star had moved far enough apart (as viewed from Earth) that their light could be separated. Observations by the
Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble Space Telescope (often referred to as HST or Hubble) is a space telescope that was launched into low Earth orbit in 1990 and remains in operation. It was not the first space telescope, but it is one of the largest and most versa ...
revealed that in fact the lens star was actually brighter and less red than expected, matching the expected spectra for a K dwarf of about 0.63
solar mass
The solar mass () is a standard unit of mass in astronomy, equal to approximately . It is often used to indicate the masses of other stars, as well as stellar clusters, nebulae, galaxies and black holes. It is approximately equal to the mass ...
es, more massive than the average star in the galaxy.
This enables an estimate of the distance to the lens star, which puts it at around 5.8 kiloparsecs (19,000 light years) away.
Planetary system
The OGLE-2003-BLG-235L/MOA-2003-BLG-53L system consists of one planet as determined by the discovery team and the follow-up confirmation observations.
See also
*
Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment or OGLE
*
List of extrasolar planets
These are lists of exoplanets. Most of these were discovered by the Kepler space telescope. There are an additional 2,054 potential exoplanets from Kepler's first mission yet to be confirmed, as well as 978 from its " Second Light" mission and ...
References
External links
*
K-type main-sequence stars
Sagittarius (constellation)
Planetary systems with one confirmed planet
Gravitational lensing
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