GJ 1061

GJ 1061

GJ 1061 is a red dwarf star located 12 light-years (3.7 parsecs) from Earth in the southern constellation of Horologium. Though it is close, it looks very dim because it only has an apparent visual magnitude of about 13. You need a moderately-sized telescope to see it.

This star is small and not very bright. It has only about 12.5% of the Sun's mass and just 0.2% of its luminous power. It is very old, at least 7 billion years, and turns slowly, taking about 125 days to complete one rotation. It does not show extra heat that we would expect from dust around it because there is no infrared excess.

Scientists have found three exoplanets orbiting GJ 1061. These planets are interesting because they orbit in an area where conditions might be right for liquid water. This makes them good candidates for studying habitability around small stars.

History of observations

The star GJ 1061 has been watched since 1974. At first, scientists thought it was far away. In 1997, a group called RECONS measured the distance better. They found that GJ 1061 is one of the 20 closest star systems to our Sun. They also thought more stars like this might be nearby.

Planetary system

In 2019, scientists found three planets around the star GJ 1061. They used a special way to find them called the radial velocity method. All three planets are smaller than twice the size of Earth and are probably made of rock.

Two of these planets, GJ 1061 c and GJ 1061 d, are in places where liquid water might be possible. This makes them interesting to study for possible life. GJ 1061 is a quiet star that does not flare up, which helps these planets keep their atmospheres.

GJ 1061 c

GJ 1061 c is a planet about 81% bigger than Earth. It gets 35% more energy from its star than Earth does. This planet orbits very close to its star, finishing one orbit every 6.7 days.

GJ 1061 d

GJ 1061 d is about 67% bigger than Earth and gets 40% less energy from its star than Earth does. It orbits its star every 13 days. Because it is close to its star, it might always show one face to the star, like how the Moon always shows the same face to Earth.