The two-sun scene in Star Wars

[billvon 2,400]

One of the most iconic scenes in the first Star Wars was the sunset scene where Luke is standing outside while a binary star sets behind him.  It was exotic and, for most viewers of the time, a completely new idea.  A planet with two suns!

But from astronomical discoveries since then, that's not even close to the most exotic sunset you might see.

In 2015 astronomers discovered a planet with FOUR stars in its sky.  The first one it orbited normally.  The second star orbited the first one, with the planet in between.  A second binary star orbited the entire system about ten light-hours away.  And what's even more surprising is that quadruple star systems like this make up about 4% of all the systems astronomers have observed.

The planet itself is much larger than Jupiter and could not support life as we know it.  However, a moon of that planet could be habitable.  Imagine the view from THAT moon.

In 1941 Asimov wrote a short story - Nightfall - about a planet with six suns that never experienced darkness, except for once every 2000 years, when the single sun in the sky would be eclipsed by a moon that no one could see (since it's always daytime.)  When he published it several physicists poo-pooed it because you could never have a planet with that many suns; the orbits wouldn't be stable!

A few years ago the first six-star stellar system was discovered.  No planets found so far.

https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/planet-reared-by-four-parent-stars

https://www.discovery.com/space/meet-tyc-7037-89-1--a-six-star-solar-system

[wmw999 2,123]

That was the first science fiction book I read; it started me on a whole lot more.

Wendy P. 

[gowlerk 1,914]

In a system like that weather cycles would be pretty complicated.

 

Edit......Oops, I see now have injected controversy into the Bonfire. Sorry about that. The universe is so fascinating and the more we learn the more it is so.  

Edited November 21, 2023 by wmw999
Reduce controversy in Bonfire

[kleggo 138]

On 11/21/2023 at 9:31 AM, billvon said:

 

In 1941 Asimov wrote a short story - Nightfall - about a planet with six suns that never experienced darkness, except for once every 2000 years, when the single sun in the sky would be eclipsed by a moon that no one could see (since it's always daytime.) 

It did not work out so well for the locals once they experienced nightfall for the first time