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47 Ursae Majoris
Oct. 9th, 2010 07:42 am A G1V star about 46 light years out. 47 Ursae Majoris has the distinction of possessing one of the first extrasolar planets ever discovered: 47 Ursae Majoris b, in 1996. Planet c was discovered in 2002 and d in 2010. There could be an undiscovered Earthlike planet orbiting closer to the star than any of the known ones.
The star's metallicity is a bit over Sol’s. Estimates of its age range from 4 to 8 billion years. That may seem an awfully wide range for such a widely-studied star, but it just goes to show astronomers don't know everything yet. When such estimates are so at odds with each other, you’ve probably got some wiggle room if your story requires you to postulate that a certain star is a lot older or younger than the conventional wisdom says.
The star's metallicity is a bit over Sol’s. Estimates of its age range from 4 to 8 billion years. That may seem an awfully wide range for such a widely-studied star, but it just goes to show astronomers don't know everything yet. When such estimates are so at odds with each other, you’ve probably got some wiggle room if your story requires you to postulate that a certain star is a lot older or younger than the conventional wisdom says.