Gliese 667 C

Star

Gliese 667 C - a red dwarf 23.6 light-years away in Scorpius, the smallest member of a triple star system (it orbits a close pair of orange dwarfs about 230 AU away). It hosts two confirmed planets, including a super-Earth in its temperate zone; several further claimed planets remain disputed and are not shown.

Open in 3D viewSee Gliese 667 C in the live, interactive 3D map

Key facts

Mass

6.56 × 10²⁹ kg

0.33 M☉

Radius

292,194 km

42% of the Sun's radius

Surface temperature

3,350 K (3077 °C)

Luminosity

5.24 × 10²⁴ W

Spectral type

M1.5V (red dwarf)

Science

Physical

Mass: 6.56 × 10²⁹ kg · 0.33 M☉
Radius: 292,194 km · 42% of the Sun's radius
Density: 6,281 kg/m³ · 6.3× water
Spectral type: M1.5V (red dwarf)

Composition

By mass: A metal-poor red dwarf about 33% of the Sun's mass; the faint third star of the GJ 667 triple.

Temperature

Surface: 3,350 K (3077 °C)

Radiation & temperature

Luminosity: 5.24 × 10²⁴ W · 0.0137 L☉
Surface temperature: 3,350 K (3077 °C)
Peak wavelength: 865 nm · near-infrared (mostly invisible to the eye)

Discovery & history

Name: 'Gliese 667 C' is the third (faintest) component of the GJ 667 triple star system in Scorpius.

The bright pair GJ 667 AB has been known for centuries; the faint red companion C was found to host planets by ESO's HARPS from 2011. Claims of up to seven planets (2013) were pared back - only two survive robust scrutiny.

Images

Where to find it — in Scorpius, the Scorpion (IAU constellation chart). To the eye it is a single point of light; no telescope has imaged its surface. — IAU / Sky & Telescope, R. Sinnott & R. Fienberg (CC BY 3.0) · Wikimedia Commons

Images from open archives · credit shown per image