Magnitude 12.2 Apparent magnitude (V) 12.2 | ||
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OY Carinae (abbreviated OY Car) is an eclipsing binary system approximately 277 light-years away from the Sun, classed as cataclysmic variable. The system comprises an eclipsing white dwarf and red dwarf that orbit each other every 1.51 hours, and possibly a yet unconfirmed third low-mass (substellar?) companion.
Planetary system?
Greenhill et al. (2009) would invoke the presence of a third object to explain orbital period variations with an apparent periodicity of roughly 35 years. The third body could yield a minimum mass 7 times greater than Jupiter and be located 9.5 Astronomical Units away from the cataclysmic variable system, being likely either a massive planetary object or else a very low-mass brown dwarf. It is likely that the apparent change is due to solar-cycle type magnetic activity in the secondary star. Large irregular deviations from the general trend, with time-scales of years, also occur. Further observations will be able to confirm either discard the presence of a substellar companion.