An international team of astronomers led by David Pinfield of the University of Hertfordshire has found a brown dwarf that is more than 99% hydrogen and helium. Described as ultra-cool, it has a temperature of just 400 degrees Celsius and its discovery could be a key step forward in helping astronomers distinguish between brown dwarfs and giant planets. The researchers publish their work in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Read more
Title: Discovery of the benchmark metal poor T8 dwarf BD+01 2920B Authors: D. J. Pinfield, B. Burningham, N. Lodieu, S. K. Leggett, C. G. Tinney, L. van Spaandonk, F. Marocco, R. Smart, J. Gomes, L. Smith, P. W. Lucas, A. C. Day-Jones, D. N. Murray, A. C. Katsiyannis, S. Catalan, C. Cardoso, J. R. A. Clarke, S. Folkes, M. C. Galvez-Ortiz, D. Homeier, J. S. Jenkins, H. R. A. Jones, Z. H. Zhang
We have searched the WISE first data release for widely separated (<10,000AU) late T dwarf companions to Hipparcos and Gliese stars. We have discovered a new binary system containing a K-band suppressed T8p dwarf WISEP J1423+0116 and the mildly metal poor ([Fe/H]=-0.38±0.06) primary BD+01 2920 (Hip 70319), a G1 dwarf at a distance of 17.2pc. This new benchmark has Teff=680 ± 55K and a mass of 20-50 Mjup. Its spectral properties are well modelled except for known discrepancies in the Y and K bands. Based on the well determined metallicity of its companion, the properties of BD+01 2920B imply that the currently known T dwarfs are dominated by young low-mass objects. We also present an accurate proper motion for the T8.5 dwarf WISEP J075003.84+272544.8.