The very faint companion star to Iota Sagitarii seen with SPHERE

The star HR 7581 (Iota Sgr) was observed in SPHERE survey mode (parallel observation in the near infrared with the dual imaging camera [left] and the integral field spectrograph [right]). A very low mass star, more than 4000 times fainter that its parent star, was discovered orbiting Iota Sgr at a tiny separation of 0.24". This is a vital demonstration of the power of SPHERE to image faint objects very close to bright ones.

The bright star itself has been suppressed almost completely by SPHERE, to allow the faint companion to appear as a clear bright spot to the upper right of the centre. This shows the great potential for SPHERE to detect exoplanets.

Credit:

ESO/J.-L. Beuzit et al./SPHERE Consortium

About the Image

Id:eso1417i
Type:Collage
Release date:4 June 2014, 12:00
Related releases:eso1417
Size:574 x 287 px

About the Object

Name:HR 7581
Type:Milky Way : Star
Category:Stars

Image Formats

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