Kepler-10
Kepler-10, formerly known as KOI-72, is a Sun-like star in the constellation of Draco that lies 607 light-years (186 parsecs) from Earth. Kepler-10 was targeted by NASA's Kepler spacecraft, as it was seen as the first star identified by the Kepler mission that could be a possible host to a small, transiting exoplanet. The star is slightly less massive, slightly larger, and slightly cooler than the Sun; at an estimated 11.9 billion years in age, Kepler-10 is almost 2.6 times the age of the Sun.
An artist's depiction of the Kepler-10 system. Kepler-10c is in the foreground. | |
| Observation data Epoch J2000 Equinox J2000 | |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Draco |
| Right ascension | 19h 02m 43.06139s |
| Declination | +50° 14′ 28.7016″ |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 11.157 |
| Characteristics | |
| Spectral type | G2V |
| Astrometry | |
| Radial velocity (Rv) | −98.44±0.24 km/s |
| Proper motion (μ) | RA: −18.483 mas/yr Dec.: 41.382 mas/yr |
| Parallax (π) | 5.3698 ± 0.0103 mas |
| Distance | 607 ± 1 ly (186.2 ± 0.4 pc) |
| Details | |
| Mass | 0.910±0.021 M☉ |
| Radius | 1.065±0.009 R☉ |
| Temperature | 5708±28 K |
| Metallicity [Fe/H] | −0.15±0.04 dex |
| Age | 10.6+1.5 −1.3 Gyr |
| Other designations | |
| Database references | |
| SIMBAD | data |
| KIC | data |
Kepler-10 is host to a planetary system made up of at least three planets. Kepler-10b, the first undeniably rocky planet, was discovered in its orbit after eight months of observation and announced on January 10, 2011. The planet orbits its star closely, completing an orbit every 0.8 days, and has a density similar to that of iron. The second planet, Kepler-10c, was confirmed on May 23, 2011, based on follow-up observations by the Spitzer Space Telescope. The data shows it has an orbital period of 42.3 days and has a radius more than double that of Earth, but it was initially thought to have a higher density, making it the largest and most massive rocky planet discovered as of June 2014. However, refined mass measurements have shown it to be a more typical volatile-rich planet. A third planet, Kepler-10d, was discovered in 2023 by radial velocity observations.