By: Lillian Skye
Planets with twin suns have previously been unheard of outside of a certain Galaxy located far, far away. However, since the planet Kepler-16 was discovered in 2011, scientists have been fascinated by newly discovered planets that orbit two suns.
A new planet, called Kepler 34(AB)b, which is located more than 4,500 light years away from planet Earth, orbits two sunlike stars at approximately the same distance that Earth orbits the sun.
"Circumbinary planets have captured the imagination of many science-fiction writers and filmmakers," Stefan Lines who is studying at the University of Bristol in England said in a statement regarding the planets. Lines is pursuing his PhD in Physics, and specilizes in studying "how planets form P-Type orbits in binary systems (the circumbinary case)." According to Stefan Lines, a "binary is a star system that features two stars, rather than one, orbiting a mutual center of mass."
Regardless of how easily the Tatooine natives may burn under the twin suns of the fictional planet's scorching rays, inhabitants of a planet that has a pair of suns have a lot more to worry about than getting a tan in half the time. In fact, scientists are still trying to understand just how Kepler 34(AB)b still exists. Supposedly, the intense gravitational flux from a pair of binary stars such as the ones that Kepler 34(AB)b orbits could grind any Earth or Tatooine-like planet to dust before the planet even finished forming.
Watch an animated version of the entire process below:
(if you cannot see the video, click this link)
In an attempt to explain the phenomenon that is Kepler 34(AB)b, scientists have suggested that planets migrate toward the star pairs as opposed to forming near the stars. Whether Kepler 34(AB)b made it's way across the stars to reside near the twin suns or is a tried and true Tatooine-like planet, it is truly a wonder of the galaxy.
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