Kepler-6
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| Observation data Epoch J2000 Equinox J2000 | |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Cygnus[1] |
| Right ascension | 19h 47m 20.9380s[2] |
| Declination | +48° 14′ 23.759″[2] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 13.8 |
| Characteristics | |
| Apparent magnitude (J) | 12.001±0.021[3] |
| Apparent magnitude (H) | 11.706±0.019[3] |
| Apparent magnitude (K) | 11.634±0.019[3] |
| Astrometry | |
| Proper motion (μ) | RA: 0.935(11) mas/yr[2] Dec.: 8.458(12) mas/yr[2] |
| Parallax (π) | 1.7108±0.0102 mas[2] |
| Distance | 1,910 ± 10 ly (585 ± 3 pc) |
| Details | |
| Mass | 1.209 M☉ |
| Radius | 1.391 R☉ |
| Temperature | 5647 K |
| Age | 3.8 Gyr |
| Other designations | |
| KOI-17, KIC 10874614, 2MASS J19472094+4814238[4] | |
| Database references | |
| SIMBAD | data |
| KIC | data |
Kepler-6 is a G-type star situated in the constellation Cygnus. The star lies within the field of view of the Kepler Mission, which discovered it as part of a NASA-led mission to discover Earth-like planets. The star, which is slightly larger, more metal-rich, slightly cooler, and more massive than the Sun, is orbited by at least one extrasolar planet, a Jupiter-sized planet named Kepler-6b that orbits closely to its star.
Kepler-6 was named for the Kepler Mission, a NASA project launched in 2009 that aims to discover Earth-like planets that transit, or cross in front of, their home stars with respect to Earth.[5] Unlike stars like the Sun or Sirius, Kepler-6 does not have a common and colloquial name. The discovery of Kepler-6b was announced by the Kepler team on January 4, 2010[6] at the 215th meeting of the American Astronomical Society along with planets around Kepler-4, Kepler-5, Kepler-7, and Kepler-8.[7] It was the third planet to be discovered by the Kepler spacecraft; the first three planets to be verified by data from Kepler had been previously discovered. These three planets were used to test the accuracy of Kepler's measurements.[8]
The discovery of Kepler-6 was confirmed by follow-up observations made using the Hobby–Eberly and Smith telescopes in Texas; the Keck 1 telescope in Hawaii; the Hale and Shane telescopes in southern California; the WIYN, MMT, and Tillinghast telescopes in Arizona; and the Nordic Optical Telescope in the Canary Islands.[9]
Characteristics
Kepler-6 is a star that is approximately 1.209 Msun, or some five-fourths the mass of the Sun. It is also wider than the sun, with a radius of 1.391 Rsun, or seven-fifths of that of the Sun. The star is approximately 3.8 billion years old, and has an effective temperature of 5647 K (9,705 °F).[10] In comparison, the Sun has a slightly warmer temperature of 5778 K.[11] Kepler-6 has a metallicity of [Fe/H] = +0.34, making it 2.2 times more metallic than the Sun.[8] On average, metal-rich stars tend to be more likely to have planets and planetary systems.[12]
The star, as seen from Earth, has an apparent magnitude of 13.8.[8] It is not visible with the naked eye. In comparison, Pluto's apparent magnitude at its brightest is slightly brighter, at 13.65.[13]
