"Why was it significant that the Phoenix lander found ice on Mars? Haven't we known for some time that Mars has ice caps at its poles?"
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Question
I have heard about the possibility about our solar system to be part of a binary one - being the second star a brown dwarf. Is there any scientific facts that may confirm such possibility?
No, the Sun is not part of a binary star system. There has never been any evidence to suggest a companion. The idea has been disproved by several infrared sky surveys, most recently the WISE mission. If there were a brown dwarf companion, these sensitive infrared telescopes would have detected it.
David Morrison
Astrobiology Senior Scientist
October 17, 2012
- After ten years and more than two thousand posted answers, David Morrison retires from answering Ask an Astrobiologist. Read his departing letter here
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