demonvamp
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# Posted: 3 Mar 2005 19:21
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Astronomers have found the tiniest full-fledged star known, an object just 16 percent bigger than Jupiter. It is smaller than some known planets that orbit other stars.
The star is a companion to a sunlike star toward the center of our Milky Way galaxy. It was found and measured by observing changes in the light output of the system when the smaller star passed in front of the larger star from our vantage point.
The discovery helps astronomers better understand a gray area of definition concerning stars and planets.
Between planets and stars, there exist odd objects called brown dwarfs. They're often referred to as failed stars, because they don't have enough mass to trigger the thermonuclear fusion that powers real stars, like the sun. A brown dwarf is typically several times the mass of Jupiter, but astronomers haven't determined the exact size or mass cutoffs on either end.
The new discovery, announced Thursday, puts a firm diameter measurement on the smallest star that does in fact shine normally.
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