Luyten 726-8

Luyten 726-8

system

Luyten 726-8 is a close pair of tiny red dwarfs 8.7 light-years away in Cetus. Both are flare stars; the fainter, UV Ceti, is the prototype after which the whole class of flaring red dwarfs is named. The two circle each other about every 26 years. No planets are confirmed.

Open in 3D viewSee Luyten 726-8 in the live, interactive 3D map

Key facts

Type
Binary flare stars
Distance
8.79 light-years
Mutual orbit
~26 years
Confirmed planets
0

Science

Classification

Type
Binary red-dwarf system (both flare stars)
Stars
BL Ceti (M5.5V) + UV Ceti (M6V), each ~0.12 M☉

Orbit

Mutual orbit
~26 years, ~5.6 AU apart on average

Planets

Confirmed planets
None

How we know

Note
No planets are confirmed around either star. The pair's separation and orbit are the measured values; the map position is symbolic (the real distance is 8.7 light-years).

Discovery & history

Name
Named for the astronomer Willem Luyten and its survey number; the stars are BL Ceti and UV Ceti.

Discovered by Willem Luyten in 1948; its fainter component defined the 'UV Ceti' class of flaring red dwarfs.

Images

Where to find it — in Cetus, the Sea Monster (IAU constellation chart). It is an unresolved point of light; its surface has never been imaged.
IAU / Sky & Telescope, R. Sinnott & R. Fienberg (CC BY 3.0) · Wikimedia Commons

Images from open archives · credit shown per image