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These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated: 1 00:00:01,002 --> 00:00:04,370 Narrator: ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, THERE ARE STELLAR SYSTEMS 2 00:00:04,372 --> 00:00:06,705 COMPLETELY UNLIKE OUR OWN 3 00:00:06,707 --> 00:00:10,342 CONTAINING TWO STARS INSTEAD OF ONE. 4 00:00:10,344 --> 00:00:15,481 OUR SUN ISN'T SO TYPICAL AFTER ALL. 5 00:00:15,483 --> 00:00:19,585 EVEN THE MOST FANTASTICAL IMAGININGS OF SCI-FI WRITERS, 6 00:00:19,587 --> 00:00:23,522 IT DOESN'T EVEN COME CLOSE TO WHAT NATURE CAN PRODUCE. 7 00:00:23,524 --> 00:00:26,725 Narrator: THESE ARE BINARY STARS, 8 00:00:26,727 --> 00:00:29,228 AND THEY CREATE SOME OF THE DEADLIEST 9 00:00:29,230 --> 00:00:32,197 PLACES IN THE UNIVERSE. 10 00:00:32,199 --> 00:00:35,434 ANY PLANET THAT'S CLOSE BY IS GONNA GET COOKED. 11 00:00:37,838 --> 00:00:40,773 Narrator: BUT SOME BINARIES MAY HAVE AN UNEXPECTED TRICK 12 00:00:40,775 --> 00:00:42,274 UP THEIR SLEEVE, 13 00:00:42,276 --> 00:00:47,079 ONE THAT TRANSFORMS OUR SEARCH FOR ALIEN WORLDS. 14 00:00:47,081 --> 00:00:49,648 WHEN IT COMES TO THE OCCURRENCE OF LIFE ON A PLANET, 15 00:00:49,650 --> 00:00:52,151 IT MAY VERY WELL BE THAT HAVING TWO STARS 16 00:00:52,153 --> 00:00:55,187 COULD BE A LOT BETTER THAN HAVING ONE. 17 00:00:55,189 --> 00:00:59,491 Narrator: IMAGINE LIVING IN THE LIGHT OF TWO SUNS. 18 00:00:59,493 --> 00:01:01,126 ARE WE MISSING OUT? 19 00:01:01,128 --> 00:01:04,930 COULD TWO STARS BE BETTER THAN ONE? 20 00:01:04,932 --> 00:01:07,933 -- Captions by VITAC -- www.vitac.com 21 00:01:07,935 --> 00:01:10,936 CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS 22 00:01:10,938 --> 00:01:16,608 ♪♪ 23 00:01:16,610 --> 00:01:22,281 ♪♪ 24 00:01:22,283 --> 00:01:23,949 Narrator: LOOK AT OUR SKY. 25 00:01:23,951 --> 00:01:28,454 YOU SEE THE SAME SOLITARY SUN RISING 26 00:01:28,456 --> 00:01:31,223 AND SETTING DAY AFTER DAY. 27 00:01:31,225 --> 00:01:34,660 ♪♪ 28 00:01:34,662 --> 00:01:38,130 BUT THROUGHOUT THE GALAXY, ALIEN CIVILIZATIONS 29 00:01:38,132 --> 00:01:44,837 COULD BE ENJOYING TWIN SUNRISES AND TWIN SUNSETS 30 00:01:44,839 --> 00:01:51,043 BECAUSE THEY ORBIT TWO STARS INSTEAD OF ONE. 31 00:01:51,045 --> 00:01:54,379 HALF THE STAR SYSTEMS IN OUR GALAXY ARE BINARY STARS. 32 00:01:54,381 --> 00:01:56,949 IT APPEARS TO BE A COMMON ROOT 33 00:01:56,951 --> 00:01:59,852 OF STELLAR FORMATION AND EVOLUTION. 34 00:01:59,854 --> 00:02:02,955 SO, WE CAN'T JUST FOCUS ON THE SINGLE-STAR SYSTEMS 35 00:02:02,957 --> 00:02:04,990 AND THINK WE HAVE A COMPLETE PICTURE. 36 00:02:07,027 --> 00:02:09,895 Narrator: THE COMPLETE PICTURE MAY INCLUDE PLANETS 37 00:02:09,897 --> 00:02:13,499 ORBITING BINARY STARS -- 38 00:02:13,501 --> 00:02:17,236 ALIEN WORLDS ROOTED IN SCI-FI FANTASIES 39 00:02:17,238 --> 00:02:21,773 THAT HAVE INSPIRED SCIENTISTS FOR DECADES. 40 00:02:21,775 --> 00:02:24,309 Woman: IF THERE IS ONE SINGLE EVENT THAT CAN MOST LINK 41 00:02:24,311 --> 00:02:25,944 TO WHY I BECAME A SCIENTIST, 42 00:02:25,946 --> 00:02:28,147 IT WAS GOING TO SEE THE ORIGINAL "STAR WARS" MOVIE, 43 00:02:28,149 --> 00:02:30,949 "EPISODE IV," WHEN I WAS 7 YEARS OLD. 44 00:02:30,951 --> 00:02:33,285 AND I CAN REMEMBER THAT SCENE OF LUKE SKYWALKER 45 00:02:33,287 --> 00:02:35,587 STANDING OUT ON THE DESERTS OF TATOOINE, 46 00:02:35,589 --> 00:02:37,523 AND THERE'S A DOUBLE SUNSET. 47 00:02:37,525 --> 00:02:40,626 THE MUSIC SWELLS UP, AND I CAN REMEMBER MY 7-YEAR-OLD HEART 48 00:02:40,628 --> 00:02:42,561 KIND OF LEAPING OUT OF MY CHEST. 49 00:02:42,563 --> 00:02:44,429 THAT'S THE MOMENT WHEN I REALIZED I WANTED 50 00:02:44,431 --> 00:02:47,199 TO BE AN ASTRONOMER. 51 00:02:47,201 --> 00:02:51,770 Narrator: COULD TWO STARS BE EVEN BETTER THAN ONE? 52 00:02:51,772 --> 00:02:54,006 LIVING ON A PLANET THAT ORBITS A BINARY SYSTEM 53 00:02:54,008 --> 00:02:55,541 COULD BE REALLY EXCITING. 54 00:02:55,543 --> 00:02:58,410 IMAGINE SEEING TWO STARS IN THE SKY EVERY DAY. 55 00:02:58,412 --> 00:02:59,645 THAT'S PRETTY COOL. 56 00:02:59,647 --> 00:03:00,812 BUT YOU KNOW WHAT? 57 00:03:00,814 --> 00:03:03,715 SOMETIMES IT CAN GET TOO EXCITING. 58 00:03:06,820 --> 00:03:08,921 Narrator: SOME BINARY SYSTEMS 59 00:03:08,923 --> 00:03:11,790 ARE NOT PLACES FOR SCI-FI ADVENTURES. 60 00:03:11,792 --> 00:03:15,093 THEY'RE HORROR STORIES. 61 00:03:15,095 --> 00:03:17,396 Woman: IN SOME CASES, THE INTERACTIONS BETWEEN 62 00:03:17,398 --> 00:03:18,630 BINARY STARS GET DEADLY. 63 00:03:18,632 --> 00:03:20,899 THE STARS CAN ACTUALLY TURN ON EACH OTHER. 64 00:03:20,901 --> 00:03:23,001 BINARY STARS ARE KIND OF LIKE SIBLINGS. 65 00:03:23,003 --> 00:03:25,437 THEY'RE BORN TOGETHER AND THEY GROW UP TOGETHER. 66 00:03:25,439 --> 00:03:29,474 BUT SOMETIMES ONE OF THOSE SIBLINGS CAN BE EVIL. 67 00:03:32,246 --> 00:03:36,682 Narrator: THIS EVIL SIBLING IS A PULSAR. 68 00:03:36,684 --> 00:03:41,186 IT STARTS LIFE BILLIONS OF YEARS AGO 69 00:03:41,188 --> 00:03:45,490 AS THE BIG BROTHER IN A BINARY. 70 00:03:45,492 --> 00:03:50,562 BUT SOMETHING TRANSFORMS IT INTO A MONSTER. 71 00:03:50,564 --> 00:03:52,764 Man: WHEN A LARGE STAR DIES, IT WILL END ITS LIFE 72 00:03:52,766 --> 00:03:56,001 AS A SUPERNOVA WITH A CRAZY BIG EXPLOSION. 73 00:03:56,003 --> 00:03:59,571 AND A PULSAR IS WHAT'S LEFT BEHIND. 74 00:03:59,573 --> 00:04:01,607 Narrator: THIS BIG BROTHER'S DEATH TRIGGERS 75 00:04:01,609 --> 00:04:04,643 ONE OF THE BIGGEST BANGS IN THE UNIVERSE. 76 00:04:04,645 --> 00:04:10,382 ♪♪ 77 00:04:10,384 --> 00:04:16,021 IN THE MIDST OF THE EXPLOSION, THE STAR'S CORE COLLAPSES, 78 00:04:16,023 --> 00:04:21,026 CRUSHING MATERIAL DOWN INTO A HYPER-DENSE BALL. 79 00:04:21,028 --> 00:04:23,862 RAPID ROTATION AND INTENSE MAGNETIC FIELDS 80 00:04:23,864 --> 00:04:27,866 JUMP START TWIN BEAMS OF DEADLY RADIATION, 81 00:04:27,868 --> 00:04:30,168 AND THE PULSAR COMES TO LIFE. 82 00:04:32,172 --> 00:04:35,407 THE PULSAR HAS TO BE ONE OF THE MOST AMAZING MONSTERS 83 00:04:35,409 --> 00:04:37,943 THAT THE UNIVERSE HAS EVER THOUGHT OF. 84 00:04:37,945 --> 00:04:40,212 THEY'RE ONLY ABOUT 10 MILES ACROSS, 85 00:04:40,214 --> 00:04:43,048 AND YET THEY CONTAIN THE MASS OF AT LEAST THE SUN 86 00:04:43,050 --> 00:04:45,183 OR EVEN SOMETIMES TWICE THE SUN. 87 00:04:45,185 --> 00:04:47,452 ♪♪ 88 00:04:47,454 --> 00:04:49,054 Narrator: THE PULSAR'S SIBLING 89 00:04:49,056 --> 00:04:51,023 IS LUCKY TO LIVE THROUGH THE CHAOS 90 00:04:51,025 --> 00:04:54,326 OF THE NEARBY SUPERNOVA. 91 00:04:54,328 --> 00:04:57,362 BUT IT NOW ORBITS A BROTHER FROM HELL 92 00:04:57,364 --> 00:05:01,633 IN A COSMIC NO-MAN'S LAND. 93 00:05:01,635 --> 00:05:03,802 ORBITING A PULSAR WOULD BE A PRETTY ROUGH EXPERIENCE 94 00:05:03,804 --> 00:05:05,971 FOR ANY OBJECT IN ITS VICINITY. 95 00:05:05,973 --> 00:05:08,140 PULSARS ARE SPITTING OUT TREMENDOUS AMOUNTS 96 00:05:08,142 --> 00:05:10,442 OF LETHAL RADIATION FROM THEIR POLES. 97 00:05:12,780 --> 00:05:15,781 Man: IT WOULDN'T BE GOOD TO LIVE ON A PLANETARY SYSTEM 98 00:05:15,783 --> 00:05:18,383 NEAR A PULSAR BECAUSE YOU ARE GONNA BE POINTED 99 00:05:18,385 --> 00:05:23,088 TOWARD A LASER OF PLANETARY DEATH. 100 00:05:23,090 --> 00:05:27,326 Narrator: BUT THESE DEATH RAYS CAN'T LAST FOREVER. 101 00:05:27,328 --> 00:05:29,061 WITHIN A FEW MILLION YEARS, 102 00:05:29,063 --> 00:05:31,863 THE PULSAR SPINS ITSELF TO DEATH. 103 00:05:33,834 --> 00:05:35,801 WITH ITS EVIL SIBLING DEAD, 104 00:05:35,803 --> 00:05:39,338 CAN THE OTHER STAR FINALLY LIVE IN PEACE? 105 00:05:41,975 --> 00:05:46,712 STARS, AS I TELL STUDENTS, ARE A LOT LIKE PEOPLE. 106 00:05:46,714 --> 00:05:51,016 AS THEY AGE, THEY TEND TO EXPAND A BIT. 107 00:05:51,018 --> 00:05:55,554 FOR A SINGLE STAR, IT CAN EXPAND AND BE AS BIG AS IT LIKES. 108 00:05:55,556 --> 00:05:58,490 BUT IN A BINARY, THERE'S A PROBLEM. 109 00:05:58,492 --> 00:06:00,726 NOW, THIS IS WHERE THE STORY GETS REALLY INTERESTING. 110 00:06:00,728 --> 00:06:02,861 SEE, YOU'VE GOT YOUR COMPANION STAR THAT'S SWELLED UP 111 00:06:02,863 --> 00:06:04,596 INTO A RED GIANT. 112 00:06:04,598 --> 00:06:07,666 SOME OF THAT RED GIANT MATERIAL NOW CAN GET INCORPORATED 113 00:06:07,668 --> 00:06:09,101 BACK INTO THE PULSAR 114 00:06:09,103 --> 00:06:12,437 AND SPIN IT UP INTO SOMETHING CALLED A MILLISECOND PULSAR. 115 00:06:15,008 --> 00:06:17,242 Narrator: THE BLOATED RED GIANT 116 00:06:17,244 --> 00:06:19,878 CAN'T HOLD ON TO ITS OUTER LAYERS, 117 00:06:19,880 --> 00:06:23,915 AND THE PULSAR BEGINS TO FEED. 118 00:06:23,917 --> 00:06:25,851 MATTER STREAMS INTO IT, 119 00:06:25,853 --> 00:06:28,120 TRANSFERRING MOMENTUM INTO THE PULSAR, 120 00:06:28,122 --> 00:06:32,057 SPINNING IT FASTER AND FASTER 121 00:06:32,059 --> 00:06:36,128 UNTIL IT ROTATES HUNDREDS OF TIMES A SECOND. 122 00:06:36,130 --> 00:06:38,296 THE BEAMS RE-IGNITE. 123 00:06:38,298 --> 00:06:41,933 OUR PULSAR IS BACK FROM THE DEAD ONCE MORE. 124 00:06:44,071 --> 00:06:47,105 THEY'RE DYING AND RESURRECTING OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN. 125 00:06:47,107 --> 00:06:50,142 IT'S LIKE A ZOMBIE YOU JUST CAN'T KILL. 126 00:06:52,246 --> 00:06:55,881 Narrator: THE RED GIANT EXTENDS THE LIFE OF ITS ZOMBIE BROTHER 127 00:06:55,883 --> 00:06:57,883 BILLIONS OF YEARS LONGER. 128 00:06:57,885 --> 00:07:01,720 ♪♪ 129 00:07:01,722 --> 00:07:05,157 WE KNOW OF HUNDREDS OF MILLISECOND PULSARS 130 00:07:05,159 --> 00:07:08,460 SCATTERED THROUGHOUT THE COSMOS. 131 00:07:08,462 --> 00:07:10,328 A TERRIFYING THOUGHT. 132 00:07:10,330 --> 00:07:14,366 ♪♪ 133 00:07:14,368 --> 00:07:16,835 BUT IT GETS EVEN SCARIER. 134 00:07:16,837 --> 00:07:19,204 SOME OF THEM ARE ALONE. 135 00:07:19,206 --> 00:07:21,373 WHAT'S HAPPENED TO THEIR SIBLING? 136 00:07:23,510 --> 00:07:25,677 BINARY STARS ARE ULTIMATELY RESPONSIBLE 137 00:07:25,679 --> 00:07:28,146 FOR THE EXISTENCE OF MILLISECOND PULSARS. 138 00:07:28,148 --> 00:07:30,515 THEY ONLY EXIST BECAUSE THEY'VE SUCKED THE LIFE 139 00:07:30,517 --> 00:07:32,517 OUT OF THEIR COMPANION STARS. 140 00:07:35,289 --> 00:07:37,823 THE MILLISECOND PULSARS THAT WE SEE THAT ARE ALL ALONE 141 00:07:37,825 --> 00:07:39,825 MAY HAVE JUST GOTTEN RID OF THE BODY. 142 00:07:41,962 --> 00:07:47,098 Narrator: THIS IS PSR J1311-3430, 143 00:07:47,100 --> 00:07:51,403 A RARE BREED OF MILLISECOND PULSAR KNOWN AS A BLACK WIDOW. 144 00:07:51,405 --> 00:07:54,539 ♪♪ 145 00:07:54,541 --> 00:07:59,644 LIKE ITS SPIDER NAMESAKE, IT'S DEADLY, 146 00:07:59,646 --> 00:08:02,414 ONE OF THE MOST MASSIVE FAST-SPINNING PULSARS 147 00:08:02,416 --> 00:08:05,517 IN THE UNIVERSE, 148 00:08:05,519 --> 00:08:09,554 SPITTING OUT 100 TIMES MORE RADIATION THAN A REGULAR ONE. 149 00:08:11,325 --> 00:08:13,992 A BLACK WIDOW PULSAR IS RIGHT ON THE EDGE OF PHYSICS. 150 00:08:13,994 --> 00:08:16,027 ANY LARGER AND IT WOULD BE A BLACK HOLE. 151 00:08:16,029 --> 00:08:18,897 THE INTENSE RADIATION IS AMAZING. 152 00:08:18,899 --> 00:08:21,867 IT'S HARD TO FATHOM THAT THESE THINGS EXIST. 153 00:08:21,869 --> 00:08:24,169 BUT GENERALLY, THE RULE IS THE FOLLOWING WITH THE UNIVERSE, 154 00:08:24,171 --> 00:08:25,670 WHICH IS BIG AND OLD. 155 00:08:25,672 --> 00:08:29,474 IF IT CAN HAPPEN, IT DOES HAPPEN. 156 00:08:29,476 --> 00:08:33,345 Narrator: THE BLACK WIDOW PULSAR IS THE STUFF OF NIGHTMARES. 157 00:08:33,347 --> 00:08:36,081 ITS RADIATION HEATS THE COMPANION STAR 158 00:08:36,083 --> 00:08:39,885 TO OVER 21,000 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT, 159 00:08:39,887 --> 00:08:43,822 MORE THAN TWICE AS HOT AS THE SURFACE OF OUR SUN. 160 00:08:43,824 --> 00:08:48,660 ♪♪ 161 00:08:48,662 --> 00:08:52,063 IT IS NOTHING LESS THAN STELLAR ANNIHILATION. 162 00:08:53,867 --> 00:08:57,936 PULSARS ARE ALREADY DRAMATIC, ENERGETIC EVENTS. 163 00:08:57,938 --> 00:09:01,506 NOW YOU'RE ADDING IN, "HEY, LET'S DESTROY A STAR." 164 00:09:01,508 --> 00:09:04,376 BLACK WIDOW SPIDERS FAMOUSLY EAT THEIR MATES, 165 00:09:04,378 --> 00:09:07,512 AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT A BLACK WIDOW PULSAR DOES. 166 00:09:07,514 --> 00:09:09,981 IT ACTUALLY USES THE MATERIAL FROM ITS COMPANION STAR 167 00:09:09,983 --> 00:09:11,516 TO SPIN ITSELF UP, 168 00:09:11,518 --> 00:09:14,085 AND THEN IT OBLITERATES IT COMPLETELY. 169 00:09:14,087 --> 00:09:17,923 Narrator: THE COMPANION STAR VANISHES, 170 00:09:17,925 --> 00:09:22,727 MURDERED BY ITS ZOMBIE SIBLING. 171 00:09:22,729 --> 00:09:24,796 IT'S THE ULTIMATE COSMIC INGRATITUDE. 172 00:09:24,798 --> 00:09:26,464 HERE YOU HAVE A COMPANION STAR 173 00:09:26,466 --> 00:09:29,935 THAT'S BROUGHT THE PULSAR BACK TO LIFE AFTER IT'S DIED TWICE, 174 00:09:29,937 --> 00:09:32,804 AND NOW ITS ENTIRE BODY IS EVISCERATED 175 00:09:32,806 --> 00:09:34,506 BY THE RADIATION OF THE PULSAR 176 00:09:34,508 --> 00:09:37,776 WITHOUT A SPECK OF DUST TO SUGGEST IT WAS EVER THERE. 177 00:09:40,113 --> 00:09:41,780 THESE BLACK WIDOW PULSARS 178 00:09:41,782 --> 00:09:44,416 ARE LIKE THE ASSASSINS OF THE GALAXY. 179 00:09:44,418 --> 00:09:46,718 NOT ONLY DO THEY DESTROY THE STAR, 180 00:09:46,720 --> 00:09:50,355 THEY GET RID OF THE EVIDENCE. 181 00:09:50,357 --> 00:09:52,390 Narrator: WHEN PULSARS ARE INVOLVED, 182 00:09:52,392 --> 00:09:55,460 TWO STARS ARE MUCH WORSE THAN ONE. 183 00:09:55,462 --> 00:09:59,030 ♪♪ 184 00:09:59,032 --> 00:10:02,500 BUT COULD THE OPPOSITE ALSO BE TRUE? 185 00:10:02,502 --> 00:10:08,573 CAN TWO STARS CREATE AN OASIS FOR HABITABLE ALIEN WORLDS? 186 00:10:12,813 --> 00:10:21,786 ♪♪ BUT COULD THE OPPOSITE ALSO BE TRUE? 187 00:10:21,788 --> 00:10:25,423 Narrator: BINARY STARS OFFER AN EXCITING POSSIBILITY... 188 00:10:28,362 --> 00:10:32,664 ALIEN EXOPLANETS ORBITING TWO STARS INSTEAD OF ONE. 189 00:10:35,202 --> 00:10:38,370 THESE BINARY STARS ARE EVERYWHERE, 190 00:10:38,372 --> 00:10:41,373 SO THE UNIVERSE COULD ACTUALLY BE SOMETHING LIKE 191 00:10:41,375 --> 00:10:45,143 WHAT WE SEE IN SCI-FI MOVIES. 192 00:10:45,145 --> 00:10:48,046 THE TATOOINE SKY COULD BE A REAL THING. 193 00:10:48,048 --> 00:10:51,182 THERE COULD BE A PLANET WITH LIFE AND CIVILIZATION, 194 00:10:51,184 --> 00:10:55,420 AND IN THE SKY, THERE COULD BE TWO SUNS. 195 00:10:55,422 --> 00:11:00,158 Narrator: WHAT WOULD IT BE LIKE TO LIVE ON THESE WORLDS? 196 00:11:00,160 --> 00:11:03,528 COULD TWO STARS BE EVEN BETTER FOR LIFE? 197 00:11:05,499 --> 00:11:08,867 OUR HOME PLANET ORBITS A SOLITARY SUN 198 00:11:08,869 --> 00:11:13,538 IN A SAFE REGION WHERE LIFE COULD EVOLVE. 199 00:11:13,540 --> 00:11:15,907 TODAY WE'RE FAMILIAR WITH A VERY STABLE, 200 00:11:15,909 --> 00:11:18,309 WELL-BEHAVED STAR -- OUR OWN SUN. 201 00:11:18,311 --> 00:11:20,145 AND OF COURSE WE KNOW THERE'S SOME SOLAR WEATHER. 202 00:11:20,147 --> 00:11:22,213 SOMETIMES IT THROWS OUT HIGH-ENERGY PARTICLES 203 00:11:22,215 --> 00:11:24,249 THAT CREATE THE NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN LIGHTS, 204 00:11:24,251 --> 00:11:26,584 BUT IT'S A VERY RELIABLE STAR. 205 00:11:26,586 --> 00:11:28,653 IT WASN'T ALWAYS THAT WAY. 206 00:11:28,655 --> 00:11:31,122 WHEN THE SUN WAS MUCH YOUNGER, IT WAS MORE ACTIVE, 207 00:11:31,124 --> 00:11:33,124 IT WAS MORE VIOLENT. 208 00:11:33,126 --> 00:11:36,995 ♪♪ 209 00:11:36,997 --> 00:11:40,799 Narrator: OUR YOUNG SUN ROTATED OVER 10 TIMES FASTER 210 00:11:40,801 --> 00:11:43,001 THAN IT DOES TODAY, 211 00:11:43,003 --> 00:11:46,237 CAUSING ITS MAGNETIC FIELD TO TWIST AND TANGLE, 212 00:11:46,239 --> 00:11:49,307 SENDING OUT HUGE SOLAR FLARES. 213 00:11:52,012 --> 00:11:53,511 Man: SOLAR FLARES CAN BE VERY BAD FOR 214 00:11:53,513 --> 00:11:54,746 THE HABITABILITY OF A PLANET, 215 00:11:54,748 --> 00:11:56,815 PARTICULARLY IF YOU'RE VERY CLOSE TO THE STAR, 216 00:11:56,817 --> 00:11:58,450 AND THE REASON'S BECAUSE SOLAR FLARES 217 00:11:58,452 --> 00:12:00,618 ESSENTIALLY REPRESENT HIGH-ENERGY RADIATION. 218 00:12:00,620 --> 00:12:02,520 FOR EXAMPLE, HIGH-ENERGY PROTONS. 219 00:12:02,522 --> 00:12:04,723 THEY SMASH INTO THE ATMOSPHERE AND THEY CAN STRIP AWAY 220 00:12:04,725 --> 00:12:08,293 GAS OFF THE ATMOSPHERE. 221 00:12:08,295 --> 00:12:12,330 Narrator: PICTURE THE EARLY SOLAR SYSTEM -- 222 00:12:12,332 --> 00:12:14,299 FLARES AND SOLAR STORMS 223 00:12:14,301 --> 00:12:18,636 ATTACK THE ATMOSPHERES OF ROCKY PLANETS. 224 00:12:18,638 --> 00:12:23,708 DEADLY CHARGED PARTICLES CAN RIP THEM AWAY MOLECULE BY MOLECULE. 225 00:12:26,179 --> 00:12:30,381 WITHOUT AN ATMOSPHERE, LIQUID WATER CANNOT SURVIVE, 226 00:12:30,383 --> 00:12:33,952 AND NO LIQUID WATER MEANS NO LIFE. 227 00:12:36,289 --> 00:12:40,258 IN THE VERY EARLY STAGES, OUR SOLAR SYSTEM WAS AN AWFUL PLACE. 228 00:12:40,260 --> 00:12:43,128 THE SUN WAS YOUNG AND HIGHLY IRREGULAR 229 00:12:43,130 --> 00:12:47,432 AND EMITTING LOTS OF ENERGY IN OUR REGION. 230 00:12:47,434 --> 00:12:50,468 IT TOOK A LONG TIME, PROBABLY 500 MILLION YEARS OR SO 231 00:12:50,470 --> 00:12:52,070 BEFORE THE SOLAR SYSTEM 232 00:12:52,072 --> 00:12:54,839 CALMED DOWN ENOUGH TO IMAGINE 233 00:12:54,841 --> 00:13:00,011 THAT ANYTHING LIKE LIFE COULD EVOLVE HERE ON EARTH. 234 00:13:00,013 --> 00:13:02,180 Narrator: THIS IS A GALAXY-WIDE PROBLEM 235 00:13:02,182 --> 00:13:04,649 FOR PLANETS ORBITING ONE STAR. 236 00:13:06,686 --> 00:13:10,989 TAKE PROXIMA CENTAURI, THE CLOSEST STAR TO OUR SUN. 237 00:13:10,991 --> 00:13:12,690 IT'S A RED DWARF, 238 00:13:12,692 --> 00:13:15,927 THE MOST COMMON TYPE OF STAR IN THE MILKY WAY. 239 00:13:18,331 --> 00:13:24,469 AND IT EVEN HAS ITS OWN PLANET NAMED PROXIMA B. 240 00:13:24,471 --> 00:13:28,840 BUT PROXIMA CENTAURI HAS NOT TREATED ITS PLANET GENTLY. 241 00:13:31,311 --> 00:13:34,345 IF PROXIMA B HAS ANY LIQUID WATER, 242 00:13:34,347 --> 00:13:36,981 IT WOULD HAVE TO BE EXTREMELY LUCKY. 243 00:13:39,886 --> 00:13:41,820 Woman: PROXIMA CENTAURI WOULD HAVE CAUSED 244 00:13:41,822 --> 00:13:43,555 HUGE AMOUNTS OF ENERGY TO COME OUT, 245 00:13:43,557 --> 00:13:45,256 AND IT WOULD EFFECTIVELY STRIP AWAY 246 00:13:45,258 --> 00:13:49,227 PROXIMA B OF ANY KIND OF ATMOSPHERE OR SURFACE WATER, 247 00:13:49,229 --> 00:13:53,164 THEREBY REMOVING ANY CHANCE OF THERE BEING HABITABLE WORLD. 248 00:13:53,166 --> 00:13:55,200 THE ONLY HOPE WE HAVE LEFT FOR PROXIMA B 249 00:13:55,202 --> 00:13:57,602 IS A STRONG MAGNETIC FIELD. 250 00:13:57,604 --> 00:14:00,271 THIS WOULD SURROUND AND PROTECT THE PLANET 251 00:14:00,273 --> 00:14:03,074 FROM THE ONSLAUGHT OF VIOLENT ENERGY 252 00:14:03,076 --> 00:14:04,776 THAT COMES OUT OF PROXIMA CENTAURI, 253 00:14:04,778 --> 00:14:06,711 AND THAT WAY, THERE COULD STILL BE AN OCEAN, 254 00:14:06,713 --> 00:14:08,780 THERE COULD BE AN OXYGEN-RICH ATMOSPHERE, 255 00:14:08,782 --> 00:14:10,682 AND PERHAPS HABITABLE ENVIRONMENT, 256 00:14:10,684 --> 00:14:12,884 SOMEWHERE WHERE LIFE COULD HAVE STARTED. 257 00:14:12,886 --> 00:14:16,020 BUT RIGHT NOW FOR PROXIMA B, ODDS ARE STACKED AGAINST IT. 258 00:14:16,022 --> 00:14:21,459 ♪♪ 259 00:14:21,461 --> 00:14:23,294 Narrator: EARTH'S STRONG MAGNETIC FIELD 260 00:14:23,296 --> 00:14:26,531 PROTECTS US FROM THE SUN'S WORST OUTBURSTS, 261 00:14:26,533 --> 00:14:28,900 ALLOWING LIQUID WATER TO SURVIVE. 262 00:14:31,638 --> 00:14:34,038 BUT OTHER PLANETS, LIKE MARS AND MERCURY, 263 00:14:34,040 --> 00:14:36,641 HAVE NOT BEEN SO LUCKY. 264 00:14:36,643 --> 00:14:40,178 SOLAR STORMS BLASTED THEIR YOUNG ATMOSPHERES... 265 00:14:42,449 --> 00:14:45,617 UNTIL THEY BECAME THIN AND WEAK, 266 00:14:45,619 --> 00:14:48,453 SNUFFING OUT ANY CHANCES FOR LIFE. 267 00:14:48,455 --> 00:14:53,491 ♪♪ 268 00:14:53,493 --> 00:14:57,862 BUT COULD BINARY SYSTEMS ACTUALLY MAKE THINGS EASIER, 269 00:14:57,864 --> 00:15:04,035 WHERE PLANETS ORBIT AROUND TWO STARS INSTEAD OF ONE? 270 00:15:04,037 --> 00:15:07,472 Man: YOUNG STARS CAN BE VERY VIOLENT AND CHAOTIC, 271 00:15:07,474 --> 00:15:09,707 BUT IN THE SYSTEM WHERE THERE ARE TWO STARS, 272 00:15:09,709 --> 00:15:13,444 THE INTERACTION OF THOSE STARS CAN SLOW DOWN THEIR ROTATION, 273 00:15:13,446 --> 00:15:16,714 AND THAT MEANS THAT THAT VIOLENCE CAN BE SLOWED DOWN. 274 00:15:16,716 --> 00:15:19,083 Man: THESE SOLAR STORMS CAN BE TEMPERED 275 00:15:19,085 --> 00:15:21,753 SO THEY'RE NOT AS VIOLENT, THEY'RE NOT AS FREQUENT, 276 00:15:21,755 --> 00:15:25,957 AND IF ANY YOUNG PLANET IS FORMED WITH AN ATMOSPHERE, 277 00:15:25,959 --> 00:15:27,959 IT CAN KEEP IT. 278 00:15:27,961 --> 00:15:31,296 Man: SO, WHEN IT COMES TO THE OCCURRENCE OF LIFE ON A PLANET, 279 00:15:31,298 --> 00:15:33,798 IT MAY VERY WELL BE THAT HAVING TWO STARS 280 00:15:33,800 --> 00:15:37,335 COULD BE A LOT BETTER THAN HAVING ONE. 281 00:15:37,337 --> 00:15:39,938 Narrator: GRAVITATIONAL INTERACTIONS 282 00:15:39,940 --> 00:15:43,374 CAN SLOW DOWN THE SPIN OF TWO CLOSE SUN-LIKE STARS, 283 00:15:43,376 --> 00:15:48,146 GIVING LIFE THE CHANCE TO DEVELOP. 284 00:15:48,148 --> 00:15:50,815 BUT NOT JUST ON ONE WORLD -- 285 00:15:50,817 --> 00:15:55,753 ON MANY PLANETS THROUGHOUT THE SYSTEM. 286 00:15:55,755 --> 00:15:57,722 WITH TWO STARS IN THE MIDDLE OF A SOLAR SYSTEM, 287 00:15:57,724 --> 00:15:59,190 YOU HAVE TWICE THE AMOUNT OF HEAT, 288 00:15:59,192 --> 00:16:00,591 TWICE THE AMOUNT OF LIGHT, 289 00:16:00,593 --> 00:16:02,193 AND THAT EXTENDS THE HABITABLE ZONE 290 00:16:02,195 --> 00:16:04,295 FARTHER OUT INTO THE SOLAR SYSTEM. 291 00:16:07,434 --> 00:16:10,268 Narrator: FOR PLANETARY SCIENTIST JANI RADEBAUGH, 292 00:16:10,270 --> 00:16:14,405 EXPLORING SYSTEMS LIKE THIS WOULD BE A DREAM COME TRUE. 293 00:16:14,407 --> 00:16:17,875 ♪♪ 294 00:16:17,877 --> 00:16:21,145 TO ME, IT IS SO THRILLING THAT WORLDS LIKE THIS COULD EXIST 295 00:16:21,147 --> 00:16:23,481 AND THAT THEY MIGHT EVEN HARBOR LIFE. 296 00:16:23,483 --> 00:16:26,184 I MEAN, THERE COULD BE A SCI-FI DESERT PLANET LIKE THIS ONE 297 00:16:26,186 --> 00:16:28,186 WITH TWIN SUNS, 298 00:16:28,188 --> 00:16:30,421 MY PERSONAL FAVORITE AND ONE 299 00:16:30,423 --> 00:16:32,490 THAT I CAN'T WAIT TO VISIT, OR IF WE WANTED, 300 00:16:32,492 --> 00:16:35,360 WE COULD JUST HOP OVER TO ANOTHER HABITABLE PLANET 301 00:16:35,362 --> 00:16:37,495 AND FIND SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. 302 00:16:40,600 --> 00:16:42,433 Narrator: GALACTIC BACKPACKERS COULD EXPLORE 303 00:16:42,435 --> 00:16:45,169 A VARIETY OF SCI-FI LANDSCAPES. 304 00:16:45,171 --> 00:16:49,007 ♪♪ 305 00:16:49,009 --> 00:16:53,144 PERHAPS ALIEN CIVILIZATIONS ARE ALREADY OUT THERE, 306 00:16:53,146 --> 00:16:56,381 LIVING ON THESE HABITABLE WORLDS. 307 00:16:56,383 --> 00:17:00,118 ♪♪ 308 00:17:00,120 --> 00:17:04,589 TWO SUNS COULD CREATE BETTER STAR SYSTEMS THAN ONE, 309 00:17:04,591 --> 00:17:07,625 BUT THEY COULD ALSO MAKE THINGS CHAOTIC, 310 00:17:07,627 --> 00:17:12,530 SHOOTING ENTIRE WORLDS INTO SPACE AT HYPER SPEED. 311 00:17:17,237 --> 00:17:26,144 ♪♪ BUT THEY COULD ALSO MAKE THINGS CHAOTIC, 312 00:17:26,146 --> 00:17:28,913 Narrator: WHAT WOULD LIFE BE LIKE 313 00:17:28,915 --> 00:17:31,315 ON A PLANET IN A BINARY SYSTEM? 314 00:17:31,317 --> 00:17:34,419 COULD IT BE BETTER? 315 00:17:34,421 --> 00:17:40,091 OR IS PLANET EARTH REALLY AS GOOD AS IT GETS? 316 00:17:40,093 --> 00:17:42,427 Man: IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR AN ABODE FOR LIFE IN THE GALAXY, 317 00:17:42,429 --> 00:17:45,196 WE TEND TO, YOU KNOW, LOOK FOR A RATHER COZY EXISTENCE OUT THERE, 318 00:17:45,198 --> 00:17:47,331 BUT, YOU KNOW, IT'S POSSIBLE THAT STARS CAN TAKE YOU 319 00:17:47,333 --> 00:17:49,067 ON A BIT OF A WILD RIDE SOMETIMES. 320 00:17:49,069 --> 00:17:52,236 ♪♪ 321 00:17:52,238 --> 00:17:53,638 Narrator: OVER THE PAST DECADE, 322 00:17:53,640 --> 00:17:56,074 WE'VE OBSERVED MYSTERIOUS OBJECTS 323 00:17:56,076 --> 00:17:58,709 HURTLING THROUGH THE GALAXY. 324 00:17:58,711 --> 00:18:02,413 SCIENTISTS CALL THEM HYPERVELOCITY STARS. 325 00:18:02,415 --> 00:18:05,249 ♪♪ 326 00:18:05,251 --> 00:18:07,552 WHEN WE SAY HYPERVELOCITY STARS, 327 00:18:07,554 --> 00:18:10,288 WE'RE TALKING SOME HYPER VELOCITIES. 328 00:18:10,290 --> 00:18:14,258 THEY'VE BEEN OBSERVED MOVING UP TO 620 MILES PER SECOND. 329 00:18:14,260 --> 00:18:17,295 YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT SOMETHING THE SIZE OF A STAR, THE SUN, 330 00:18:17,297 --> 00:18:20,498 AN OCTILLION TONS OF MASS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT 331 00:18:20,500 --> 00:18:24,769 GETTING FLUNG AWAY WAY FASTER THAN A RIFLE BULLET. 332 00:18:26,706 --> 00:18:28,973 Narrator: THESE HYPERVELOCITY STARS 333 00:18:28,975 --> 00:18:31,476 START OFF IN A BINARY SYSTEM, 334 00:18:31,478 --> 00:18:34,011 BUT SOMETHING TEARS THEM APART -- 335 00:18:34,013 --> 00:18:36,047 SOMETHING BIG. 336 00:18:38,151 --> 00:18:40,351 IN ORDER TO CREATE A HYPERVELOCITY STAR, 337 00:18:40,353 --> 00:18:43,821 YOU NEED A VERY INTENSE SOURCE OF GRAVITATIONAL POWER. 338 00:18:43,823 --> 00:18:45,723 WELL, THE MOST INTENSE SOURCE WE KNOW OF 339 00:18:45,725 --> 00:18:47,992 IS THE BLACK HOLE AT THE CENTER OF THE GALAXY. 340 00:18:47,994 --> 00:18:55,199 ♪♪ 341 00:18:55,201 --> 00:18:58,669 Narrator: THIS BLACK HOLE IS SAGITTARIUS A-STAR. 342 00:18:58,671 --> 00:19:03,174 ♪♪ 343 00:19:03,176 --> 00:19:05,343 IT IS SUPERMASSIVE -- 344 00:19:05,345 --> 00:19:10,214 FOUR MILLION TIMES THE MASS OF OUR SUN. 345 00:19:10,216 --> 00:19:13,251 TWO STARS STRAY A LITTLE TOO CLOSE, 346 00:19:13,253 --> 00:19:16,787 AND THE ENORMOUS GRAVITY OF THE BLACK HOLE PULLS AT THEM. 347 00:19:18,758 --> 00:19:22,760 BUT THE STAR CLOSEST FEELS A MUCH STRONGER TUG, 348 00:19:22,762 --> 00:19:26,063 AND THIS BINARY SYSTEM GETS RIPPED APART. 349 00:19:29,269 --> 00:19:31,702 IT'S A LITTLE BIT LIKE THE OLYMPIC HAMMER THROW, 350 00:19:31,704 --> 00:19:35,106 WHERE THE HAMMER IS ONE STAR IN THE BINARY SYSTEM 351 00:19:35,108 --> 00:19:38,176 AND THE OLYMPIAN IS THE OTHER STAR, 352 00:19:38,178 --> 00:19:39,443 WITH THE CORD CONNECTING THE HAMMER 353 00:19:39,445 --> 00:19:40,711 BEING THE GRAVITATIONAL TIE 354 00:19:40,713 --> 00:19:42,480 BETWEEN THE BINARY STARS. 355 00:19:42,482 --> 00:19:45,216 IF YOU CUT THAT CORD, THE OTHER STAR CAN GO FLYING OFF 356 00:19:45,218 --> 00:19:47,752 AT VERY, VERY HIGH SPEED. 357 00:19:49,756 --> 00:19:51,422 Narrator: ONCE THE CORD IS CUT, 358 00:19:51,424 --> 00:19:53,791 THE BINARY STARS SEPARATE FOREVER. 359 00:19:56,129 --> 00:19:58,462 ONE IS TRAPPED IN THE GRAVITATIONAL GRIP 360 00:19:58,464 --> 00:20:01,866 OF THE BLACK HOLE. 361 00:20:01,868 --> 00:20:04,802 THE OTHER IS FLUNG OUT OF THE GALAXY, 362 00:20:04,804 --> 00:20:09,407 BECOMING A LITERAL SHOOTING STAR. 363 00:20:09,409 --> 00:20:14,478 BUT THE STAR MAY NOT BE ALONE. 364 00:20:14,480 --> 00:20:17,915 IF A PLANET IS GRAVITATIONALLY BOUND TO A STAR 365 00:20:17,917 --> 00:20:21,352 AND THAT STAR GETS EJECTED FROM THE SYSTEM, 366 00:20:21,354 --> 00:20:23,187 IF CONDITIONS ARE RIGHT, 367 00:20:23,189 --> 00:20:26,324 THAT PLANET CAN HITCH A RIDE WITH THAT STAR. 368 00:20:26,326 --> 00:20:28,993 WHERE THE STAR GOES, THE PLANET GOES. 369 00:20:28,995 --> 00:20:33,731 ♪♪ 370 00:20:33,733 --> 00:20:36,267 IF YOU'RE ON PLANET AROUND A HYPERVELOCITY STAR, 371 00:20:36,269 --> 00:20:39,170 YOU WOULD BE THE ENVY OF POETS AND SCIENTISTS EVERYWHERE 372 00:20:39,172 --> 00:20:42,974 BECAUSE YOU WOULD HAVE THE MOST BREATHTAKING VIEW IMAGINABLE. 373 00:20:42,976 --> 00:20:45,109 YOU WOULD START AT THE VERY CENTER OF THE GALAXY, 374 00:20:45,111 --> 00:20:48,546 YOU'LL HAVE THIS BEAUTIFUL VIEW OF THE SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLE. 375 00:20:48,548 --> 00:20:52,116 ♪♪ 376 00:20:52,118 --> 00:20:54,652 Narrator: GENERATION AFTER GENERATION 377 00:20:54,654 --> 00:20:56,487 ON THIS HYPERVELOCITY PLANET 378 00:20:56,489 --> 00:21:00,224 WOULD BE TREATED TO THRILLING NEW VIEWS OF THE GALAXY. 379 00:21:00,226 --> 00:21:04,362 ♪♪ 380 00:21:04,364 --> 00:21:06,264 BY THE TIME YOU'RE DONE AS YOU'RE EJECTED, 381 00:21:06,266 --> 00:21:09,734 YOU WOULD SEE THE ENTIRE MILKY WAY GALAXY, 382 00:21:09,736 --> 00:21:13,771 EVERYTHING, AND IT WOULD RECEDE AWAY FROM YOU 383 00:21:13,773 --> 00:21:17,742 AS YOU MOVED OFF INTO SPACE TO WHO KNOWS WHERE. 384 00:21:17,744 --> 00:21:22,046 ♪♪ 385 00:21:22,048 --> 00:21:25,316 Narrator: HYPERVELOCITY PLANETS JUST GO TO SHOW 386 00:21:25,318 --> 00:21:29,620 THAT THE UNIVERSE IS WAY STRANGER THAN FICTION. 387 00:21:29,622 --> 00:21:32,757 Man: AS WE LEARN MORE ABOUT STARS AND STELLAR SYSTEMS, 388 00:21:32,759 --> 00:21:36,961 EVEN THE MOST FANTASTICAL IMAGININGS OF SCI-FI WRITERS, 389 00:21:36,963 --> 00:21:39,997 IT DOESN'T EVEN COME CLOSE TO WHAT NATURE CAN PRODUCE. 390 00:21:39,999 --> 00:21:43,401 ♪♪ 391 00:21:43,403 --> 00:21:46,404 Narrator: THIS HYPERVELOCITY STAR AND PLANET 392 00:21:46,406 --> 00:21:48,806 GO ON THE JOURNEY OF A LIFETIME, 393 00:21:48,808 --> 00:21:51,542 BUT WHAT ABOUT THE STRANDED COMPANION STAR, 394 00:21:51,544 --> 00:21:53,878 STUCK IN THE CENTER OF THE GALAXY 395 00:21:53,880 --> 00:21:58,149 NEXT TO A SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLE? 396 00:21:58,151 --> 00:22:02,186 IT, TOO, COULD HAVE A PLANET ORBITING IT, 397 00:22:02,188 --> 00:22:05,089 BUT IT'S A WORLD LIVING ON BORROWED TIME. 398 00:22:07,493 --> 00:22:10,828 IF THERE'S A PLANET ORBITING THE STAR THAT GETS LEFT BEHIND 399 00:22:10,830 --> 00:22:12,630 BY THE HYPERVELOCITY STAR, 400 00:22:12,632 --> 00:22:14,031 SO THE PLANET IS NOW ORBITING 401 00:22:14,033 --> 00:22:16,334 THE STAR THAT'S ORBITING THE BLACK HOLE, 402 00:22:16,336 --> 00:22:19,470 THAT'S NOT PROBABLY GONNA LAST VERY LONG. 403 00:22:19,472 --> 00:22:23,140 TYPICALLY, THE LITTLE GUY -- PEW! GETS SHOT AWAY. 404 00:22:23,142 --> 00:22:26,644 ♪♪ 405 00:22:26,646 --> 00:22:29,413 SO IT'S ENTIRELY POSSIBLE THAT WE HAVE HYPERVELOCITY 406 00:22:29,415 --> 00:22:31,182 ROGUE PLANETS, 407 00:22:31,184 --> 00:22:33,317 PLANETS WITHOUT A STAR 408 00:22:33,319 --> 00:22:34,685 THAT ARE SHOOTING OUT OF THE GALAXY 409 00:22:34,687 --> 00:22:38,322 AT HIGH SPEED, AS WELL. 410 00:22:38,324 --> 00:22:40,925 Narrator: BUT IT'S NOT A TRIP YOU'D WANT TO TAKE. 411 00:22:40,927 --> 00:22:45,463 ♪♪ 412 00:22:45,465 --> 00:22:48,032 BECAUSE THIS WORLD IS DESTINED TO WANDER 413 00:22:48,034 --> 00:22:51,502 THE EMPTINESS OF SPACE FOREVER AND ALONE. 414 00:22:53,473 --> 00:22:54,605 Man: THE PROBLEM WITH THE PLANET 415 00:22:54,607 --> 00:22:56,974 IS THAT IT'S NO LONGER BOUND TO A STAR, 416 00:22:56,976 --> 00:23:00,244 SO THE OUTER SURFACE WOULD MOST LIKELY FREEZE. 417 00:23:02,348 --> 00:23:03,614 Narrator: BINARY STARS 418 00:23:03,616 --> 00:23:07,818 CAN CREATE WEIRD ENVIRONMENTS FOR PLANETS. 419 00:23:07,820 --> 00:23:12,456 YOU COULD GET AN EXHILARATING VIEW OF THE GALAXY, 420 00:23:12,458 --> 00:23:15,459 OR FREEZE ON AN ICY WASTELAND. 421 00:23:15,461 --> 00:23:23,801 ♪♪ 422 00:23:23,803 --> 00:23:28,072 BUT ASTRONOMERS ARE FINDING BIZARRE NEW SYSTEMS 423 00:23:28,074 --> 00:23:31,409 WHERE STARS ARE NOT BEING TORN APART, 424 00:23:31,411 --> 00:23:35,679 THEY'RE BEING DRIVEN TOGETHER, 425 00:23:35,681 --> 00:23:41,018 CREATING A COSMIC EVENT COMING SOON TO OUR GALAXY. 426 00:23:44,290 --> 00:23:52,329 THEY'RE BEING DRIVEN TOGETHER, 427 00:23:52,331 --> 00:23:55,065 Narrator: ARE TWO STARS BETTER THAN ONE? 428 00:23:55,067 --> 00:23:57,435 ♪♪ 429 00:23:57,437 --> 00:24:01,906 BINARY SYSTEMS ARE CERTAINLY VERY DRAMATIC. 430 00:24:01,908 --> 00:24:05,476 THERE'S EVEN ONE THAT HAS TWO STARS SO CLOSE, 431 00:24:05,478 --> 00:24:09,046 THEY'RE TOUCHING. 432 00:24:09,048 --> 00:24:14,251 KIC 9832227 IS A VERY INTERESTING BINARY SYSTEM. 433 00:24:14,253 --> 00:24:16,587 IT'S WHAT WE CALL A CONTACT BINARY. 434 00:24:16,589 --> 00:24:20,458 SO THIS MEANS THAT THE TWO STARS ARE BASICALLY IN CONTACT, 435 00:24:20,460 --> 00:24:21,959 BUT THEY'RE SEPARATE STARS. 436 00:24:21,961 --> 00:24:25,896 THEY SHARE A COMMON ATMOSPHERE OR ENVELOPE. 437 00:24:25,898 --> 00:24:27,731 ONE'S ABOUT A THIRD THE MASS OF THE SUN, 438 00:24:27,733 --> 00:24:30,334 ONE ABOUT 1.4 TIMES THE MASS OF THE SUN, 439 00:24:30,336 --> 00:24:34,705 AND THEY'RE ROTATING AROUND EACH OTHER EVERY 11 HOURS. 440 00:24:34,707 --> 00:24:38,409 Narrator: 2017 -- SCIENTISTS FROM CALVIN COLLEGE 441 00:24:38,411 --> 00:24:42,213 REVEAL AN EXCITING DISCOVERY. 442 00:24:42,215 --> 00:24:47,785 THESE BINARY STARS ARE MOVING EVEN CLOSER TOGETHER. 443 00:24:47,787 --> 00:24:51,188 THEY DO THE MATH AND MAKE A BOLD PREDICTION. 444 00:24:53,759 --> 00:24:57,228 SO, THIS STAR IS DIFFERENT FROM ALL OTHER CONTACT BINARY STARS 445 00:24:57,230 --> 00:24:59,930 WE'VE STUDIED BECAUSE THIS ONE, WE BELIEVE, 446 00:24:59,932 --> 00:25:03,033 IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS IS GOING TO MERGE, 447 00:25:03,035 --> 00:25:05,970 SPIRAL IN TOGETHER, AND EXPLODE. 448 00:25:08,808 --> 00:25:11,408 BUT IT'S A STAR CLOSE ENOUGH TO US -- 449 00:25:11,410 --> 00:25:13,811 ONLY 1,800 LIGHT YEARS AWAY -- 450 00:25:13,813 --> 00:25:15,946 THAT WHEN IT EXPLODES, IT'D BE BRIGHT ENOUGH 451 00:25:15,948 --> 00:25:18,215 TO SEE WITH YOUR NAKED EYE. 452 00:25:18,217 --> 00:25:21,151 Narrator: TWO STARS CRASHING TOGETHER -- 453 00:25:21,153 --> 00:25:25,289 AN EVENT KNOWN AS A RED NOVA. 454 00:25:25,291 --> 00:25:27,024 Man: IF THIS IS TRUE, IF YOU REALLY SEE IT, 455 00:25:27,026 --> 00:25:28,526 IT WOULD BE FABULOUS, 456 00:25:28,528 --> 00:25:30,394 BECAUSE NOT ONLY WOULD IT VALIDATE 457 00:25:30,396 --> 00:25:31,996 THIS AMAZING PREDICTION, 458 00:25:31,998 --> 00:25:34,532 BUT WE HAVE SOMETHING NEW TO LOOK AT IN THE NIGHT SKY. 459 00:25:34,534 --> 00:25:38,102 IF THIS COMES THROUGH, THIS WOULD JUST BE 460 00:25:38,104 --> 00:25:40,337 THE EVENT OF MY LIFETIME. 461 00:25:43,009 --> 00:25:46,510 Man: WE DON'T GET TO PREDICT TOO MANY THINGS IN ASTRONOMY 462 00:25:46,512 --> 00:25:47,745 EXCEPT, YOU KNOW, 463 00:25:47,747 --> 00:25:50,180 "A BILLION YEARS FROM NOW, THIS THING WILL HAPPEN." 464 00:25:50,182 --> 00:25:54,251 SO YOU HAVE TO APPRECIATE WHAT THIS THING IS. 465 00:25:54,253 --> 00:25:57,955 THESE STARS ARE PROBABLY BILLIONS OF YEARS OLD. 466 00:25:57,957 --> 00:26:01,559 WE'RE JUST SO LUCKY TO BE ABLE TO SEE THIS RIGHT AT THE END 467 00:26:01,561 --> 00:26:03,727 WHERE WE JUST HAVE A FEW YEARS LEFT -- 468 00:26:03,729 --> 00:26:07,164 A FEW YEARS OUT OF A BILLION-YEAR LIFE SPAN. 469 00:26:07,166 --> 00:26:10,968 ♪♪ 470 00:26:10,970 --> 00:26:14,204 Narrator: IT'S AN AMAZING COSMIC COINCIDENCE 471 00:26:14,206 --> 00:26:17,841 BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE NUMBER THREE. 472 00:26:17,843 --> 00:26:21,111 BEFORE THESE STARS CAME INTO CLOSE CONTACT, 473 00:26:21,113 --> 00:26:23,347 THEY MAY HAVE HAD A NEIGHBOR -- 474 00:26:23,349 --> 00:26:29,186 A DISTANT THIRD STAR THAT SET THIS ALL IN MOTION. 475 00:26:29,188 --> 00:26:30,621 WHENEVER YOU HAVE THREE OBJECTS, 476 00:26:30,623 --> 00:26:34,058 THE GRAVITATIONAL DYNAMICS BECOMES INCREDIBLY COMPLICATED. 477 00:26:35,728 --> 00:26:38,562 THE THIRD STAR PULLS ON THE BINARY 478 00:26:38,564 --> 00:26:40,364 AS THE TWO ORBIT EACH OTHER, 479 00:26:40,366 --> 00:26:44,802 STRETCHING THEM OUT BASICALLY INTO AN ELONGATED ORBIT. 480 00:26:44,804 --> 00:26:46,604 THE TWO STARS RESIST THAT, 481 00:26:46,606 --> 00:26:49,607 TRYING TO CIRCULARIZE THEIR ORBIT AGAIN. 482 00:26:49,609 --> 00:26:52,276 THAT BACK AND FORTH INTERACTION 483 00:26:52,278 --> 00:26:54,645 PUSHES THE THIRD STAR FURTHER AWAY, 484 00:26:54,647 --> 00:26:58,315 PULLS THE TWO STARS CLOSER. 485 00:26:58,317 --> 00:27:01,218 Narrator: THE STARS HAVE BEEN SHOVED TOGETHER, 486 00:27:01,220 --> 00:27:04,755 BUT THEIR STORY IS ABOUT TO GET EVEN WEIRDER. 487 00:27:07,827 --> 00:27:10,427 MATTER WILL STREAM OFF THE SMALLER STAR 488 00:27:10,429 --> 00:27:14,598 UNTIL IT IS TOO GRAVITATIONALLY WEAK TO HOLD ITS POSITION... 489 00:27:16,769 --> 00:27:19,837 DRIVING THEIR ORBITS EVEN TIGHTER TOGETHER, 490 00:27:19,839 --> 00:27:22,506 MOVING THEM FASTER AND FASTER. 491 00:27:24,677 --> 00:27:29,513 FINALLY, THE SMALLER STAR WILL PLUNGE INTO THE LARGER ONE, 492 00:27:29,515 --> 00:27:33,283 TEARING THROUGH IT... 493 00:27:33,285 --> 00:27:36,854 AND BLASTING HUNDREDS OF TRILLIONS OF TONS OF DEBRIS 494 00:27:36,856 --> 00:27:39,723 IN EVERY DIRECTION. 495 00:27:39,725 --> 00:27:41,992 Man: THIS WOULD BE AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF ENERGY. 496 00:27:41,994 --> 00:27:44,228 EXPLOSION AT ITS PEAK WILL BE 10,000 TIMES 497 00:27:44,230 --> 00:27:48,365 BRIGHTER THAN THE STAR IS TODAY. 498 00:27:48,367 --> 00:27:53,070 Narrator: THIS COLLISION WILL ALSO BE AN ACT OF CREATION. 499 00:27:53,072 --> 00:27:58,876 THE CORES OF THE TWO STARS WILL COLLIDE AND BECOME ONE, 500 00:27:58,878 --> 00:28:02,513 CREATING A SUPER HOT BLUE BALL OF GAS, 501 00:28:02,515 --> 00:28:06,517 A NEWBORN STAR. 502 00:28:06,519 --> 00:28:08,452 JUST THINK ABOUT HOW COOL THAT IS. 503 00:28:08,454 --> 00:28:11,722 IN THE CONSTELLATION CYGNUS, IN ABOUT FIVE YEARS' TIME, 504 00:28:11,724 --> 00:28:16,026 A NEW STAR IS GONNA TURN ON CREATED FROM TWO OLDER STARS -- 505 00:28:16,028 --> 00:28:19,430 AN ENTIRELY NEW WAY OF SEEING A STAR BEING BORN. 506 00:28:22,535 --> 00:28:23,901 Narrator: AROUND THE STAR, 507 00:28:23,903 --> 00:28:26,837 SEARING-HOT GAS WILL EXPAND OUTWARDS, 508 00:28:26,839 --> 00:28:31,141 TURNING RED AS IT COOLS, BECOMING THE RED NOVA. 509 00:28:31,143 --> 00:28:37,047 ♪♪ 510 00:28:37,049 --> 00:28:40,417 THE EXPLOSION WILL CREATE A BRAND-NEW LIGHT 511 00:28:40,419 --> 00:28:44,088 AS BRIGHT AS THE NORTH STAR IN OUR NIGHT SKY. 512 00:28:46,392 --> 00:28:49,326 Man: IT'S JUST PHENOMENAL THAT WE GET THIS OPPORTUNITY. 513 00:28:49,328 --> 00:28:52,863 THIS IS WHAT EVERY ASTRONOMER WANTS TO DO. 514 00:28:54,900 --> 00:28:56,600 Narrator: WE ARE AT A SAFE DISTANCE 515 00:28:56,602 --> 00:28:58,936 FROM THIS COLLIDING STAR DUO. 516 00:29:00,906 --> 00:29:04,808 BUT WOULD WE FEEL THE SAME WAY IF WE WERE ON A PLANET 517 00:29:04,810 --> 00:29:07,511 ORBITING THIS BINARY SYSTEM. 518 00:29:07,513 --> 00:29:10,481 THIS IS A VERY, VERY ENERGETIC EVENT. 519 00:29:10,483 --> 00:29:13,917 COULD LIFE SURVIVE SUCH AN EVENT? 520 00:29:13,919 --> 00:29:16,920 I WOULDN'T WANT TO BE THERE AS THE TEST GUINEA PIG. 521 00:29:20,559 --> 00:29:22,559 ALL THIS ENERGY COMES POURING IN, 522 00:29:22,561 --> 00:29:26,096 AND YOUR ATMOSPHERE IS LIKELY TO BE STRIPPED AWAY. 523 00:29:26,098 --> 00:29:28,365 IF THERE ARE OCEANS ON THIS WORLD, 524 00:29:28,367 --> 00:29:30,501 THEY'RE LIKELY TO BE VAPORIZED, 525 00:29:30,503 --> 00:29:34,538 AND THERE MAY BE VERY LITTLE LEFT OTHER THAN ROCK. 526 00:29:34,540 --> 00:29:36,807 A NOVA IS NOTHING YOU WANT TO FOOL AROUND WITH. 527 00:29:36,809 --> 00:29:39,676 ANY PLANET THAT'S CLOSE BY IS GONNA GET COOKED. 528 00:29:39,678 --> 00:29:43,580 IT'S GONNA GET SANDBLASTED, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THERE IT IS. 529 00:29:43,582 --> 00:29:45,449 IF THAT'S THE KIND OF PLACE YOU WANT TO BE, 530 00:29:45,451 --> 00:29:48,485 HEY, MORE POWER TO YOU, BUT I LIKE EARTH. 531 00:29:52,591 --> 00:29:55,259 Narrator: EARTH HAS A GOOD THING GOING THESE DAYS 532 00:29:55,261 --> 00:29:57,561 WITH OUR SINGLE STAR. 533 00:29:57,563 --> 00:30:03,834 NO COLLISIONS, NO EXPLOSIONS, NO DRAMA. 534 00:30:03,836 --> 00:30:06,403 FOR TWO STARS TO BE BETTER THAN ONE, 535 00:30:06,405 --> 00:30:10,107 WE NEED TO FIND ROCKY PLANETS IN A BINARY SYSTEM. 536 00:30:12,878 --> 00:30:17,548 BUT SO FAR, WE HAVEN'T, RAISING THE QUESTION -- 537 00:30:17,550 --> 00:30:20,818 CAN THEY REALLY EXIST AT ALL? 538 00:30:25,224 --> 00:30:34,031 ♪♪ BUT SO FAR, WE HAVEN'T, RAISING THE QUESTION -- 539 00:30:34,033 --> 00:30:36,600 Narrator: THE KEPLER SPACE TELESCOPE 540 00:30:36,602 --> 00:30:39,870 HAS BLOWN THE SEARCH FOR ALIEN WORLDS WIDE OPEN, 541 00:30:39,872 --> 00:30:42,906 DISCOVERING THOUSANDS OF EXOPLANETS 542 00:30:42,908 --> 00:30:45,142 ORBITING SINGLE STARS. 543 00:30:45,144 --> 00:30:48,912 ♪♪ 544 00:30:48,914 --> 00:30:52,216 BUT FINDING ROCKY PLANETS IN BINARY SYSTEMS 545 00:30:52,218 --> 00:30:54,151 IS PROVING DIFFICULT. 546 00:30:54,153 --> 00:30:57,621 ♪♪ 547 00:30:57,623 --> 00:31:00,457 WE HAVE FOUND PLANETS ORBITING BINARY STAR SYSTEMS, 548 00:31:00,459 --> 00:31:02,826 AND THAT'S A BIG LEAP FORWARD IN OUR UNDERSTANDING 549 00:31:02,828 --> 00:31:04,361 OF HOW THE UNIVERSE WORKS. 550 00:31:04,363 --> 00:31:07,664 UNFORTUNATELY, THOSE PLANETS HAVE ALL BEEN GAS GIANTS, 551 00:31:07,666 --> 00:31:11,635 AND THEY'RE NOT REALLY GOOD FOR FORMING LIFE. 552 00:31:11,637 --> 00:31:13,937 Narrator: FOR ALIEN CIVILIZATIONS 553 00:31:13,939 --> 00:31:15,572 TO EXIST AROUND TWO SUNS, 554 00:31:15,574 --> 00:31:17,674 THEY NEED SOLID GROUND. 555 00:31:17,676 --> 00:31:21,311 THE HUNT FOR THE WORLD OF OUR SCI-FI DREAMS 556 00:31:21,313 --> 00:31:24,548 HAS SO FAR BEEN FRUITLESS. 557 00:31:24,550 --> 00:31:27,618 WE ALWAYS HAVE TO CONSIDER THAT MAYBE ROCKY PLANETS 558 00:31:27,620 --> 00:31:29,219 AROUND BINARY STARS 559 00:31:29,221 --> 00:31:32,422 JUST DON'T EXIST FOR SOME REASON THAT WE CURRENTLY DON'T KNOW. 560 00:31:32,424 --> 00:31:37,160 AND THAT WOULD MEAN THERE WOULD BE NO TATOOINE. 561 00:31:37,162 --> 00:31:40,130 Narrator: COULD PAIRED STARS MAKE IT IMPOSSIBLE 562 00:31:40,132 --> 00:31:42,232 FOR A ROCKY PLANET TO FORM. 563 00:31:45,004 --> 00:31:47,771 IF YOU'RE A PLANET TRYING TO FORM AROUND A BINARY SYSTEM, 564 00:31:47,773 --> 00:31:50,374 THE GRAVITY IN THE MIDDLE IS ALWAYS CHANGING. 565 00:31:50,376 --> 00:31:52,476 INSTEAD OF A SINGLE STAR, YOU HAVE TWO STARS 566 00:31:52,478 --> 00:31:56,079 ORBITING EACH OTHER. 567 00:31:56,081 --> 00:31:59,049 Narrator: THESE TWO INFANT STARS 568 00:31:59,051 --> 00:32:02,452 START A GRAVITATIONAL TUG-OF-WAR. 569 00:32:02,454 --> 00:32:06,523 THE MATERIAL BETWEEN THEM IS PULLED IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS, 570 00:32:06,525 --> 00:32:10,827 MAKING IT HARDER FOR BITS OF ROCK AND DUST TO STICK TOGETHER. 571 00:32:10,829 --> 00:32:17,200 THE SYSTEM SEEMS TOO CHAOTIC FOR ROCKY PLANETS TO FORM. 572 00:32:17,202 --> 00:32:20,037 Man: THE COMPLEX GRAVITATIONAL INTERACTIONS 573 00:32:20,039 --> 00:32:23,840 AT PLAY DESTABILIZE A LOT OF POTENTIAL ORBITS. 574 00:32:23,842 --> 00:32:27,511 THERE AREN'T A LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR A YOUNG PLANET 575 00:32:27,513 --> 00:32:31,715 THAT MIGHT WANT TO FORM TO FIND A STABLE, LONG-TERM HOME 576 00:32:31,717 --> 00:32:35,285 THAT LASTS FOR BILLIONS OF YEARS AROUND THAT BINARY SYSTEM. 577 00:32:35,287 --> 00:32:39,790 IT'S RELATIVELY EASY TO GET EJECTED OR CONSUMED 578 00:32:39,792 --> 00:32:41,992 BY THE STARS THEMSELVES. 579 00:32:44,063 --> 00:32:46,763 Narrator: SO, WHY CAN'T ROCKY PLANETS SURVIVE 580 00:32:46,765 --> 00:32:49,566 WHEN GAS GIANTS CAN? 581 00:32:49,568 --> 00:32:53,503 AS ANY GOOD REALTOR WILL TELL YOU, IT'S ALL ABOUT 582 00:32:53,505 --> 00:32:57,741 LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION. 583 00:32:57,743 --> 00:33:01,611 WE THINK THAT ROCKY PLANETS TEND TO FORM CLOSE IN AROUND STARS 584 00:33:01,613 --> 00:33:04,014 WHERE IT'S NICE AND WARM, BUT FURTHER OUT WHERE IT'S COLDER, 585 00:33:04,016 --> 00:33:06,149 YOU HAVE THE GAS GIANT PLANETS FORMING. 586 00:33:06,151 --> 00:33:08,118 SO, IF YOU HAVE A BINARY STAR SYSTEM, 587 00:33:08,120 --> 00:33:10,620 IT'S LIKE A GRAVITATIONAL TORNADO WHIPPING OUT 588 00:33:10,622 --> 00:33:12,356 ALL OF THAT ROCKY MATERIAL 589 00:33:12,358 --> 00:33:14,491 SO THAT YOU'RE ONLY LEFT WITH THE COLD STUFF, 590 00:33:14,493 --> 00:33:17,260 WHICH CAN FORM GAS GIANTS FURTHER OUT. 591 00:33:17,262 --> 00:33:19,930 Narrator: IF A TWO-STAR SYSTEM WERE A CITY, 592 00:33:19,932 --> 00:33:23,367 THE GAS GIANTS ARE OUT IN THE SUBURBS. 593 00:33:23,369 --> 00:33:27,437 A NICE, PEACEFUL SPOT AWAY FROM THE COMPETING GRAVITY 594 00:33:27,439 --> 00:33:30,841 OF THE TWO STARS. 595 00:33:30,843 --> 00:33:35,712 PERHAPS ONE-STAR SYSTEMS ARE BETTER THAN TWO. 596 00:33:35,714 --> 00:33:38,315 GAS GIANTS AREN'T GREAT FOR LIFE, 597 00:33:38,317 --> 00:33:44,354 AND THOSE ARE THE PLANETS WE'RE FINDING IN THESE BINARY SYSTEMS. 598 00:33:44,356 --> 00:33:46,523 THE VERY REASON THAT WE'RE HERE COULD BE DOWN TO THE FACT 599 00:33:46,525 --> 00:33:48,558 THAT WE HAVE ONE STAR RATHER THAN TWO. 600 00:33:48,560 --> 00:33:51,862 ♪♪ 601 00:33:51,864 --> 00:33:53,663 Narrator: BUT IN 2017, 602 00:33:53,665 --> 00:33:57,501 A DISCOVERY AROUND 2,000 LIGHT YEARS AWAY 603 00:33:57,503 --> 00:34:00,704 GIVES US NEW HOPE. 604 00:34:00,706 --> 00:34:03,507 Man: SO, AS WE DISCOVER NEW THINGS IN THE UNIVERSE, 605 00:34:03,509 --> 00:34:05,909 WE TEND TO GIVE THEM CATALOGUE NAMES, 606 00:34:05,911 --> 00:34:07,577 WHICH CAN BE VERY BORING 607 00:34:07,579 --> 00:34:10,147 AND VERY DIFFICULT TO KEEP TRACK OF. 608 00:34:10,149 --> 00:34:14,284 BUT SDSS 1557 IS WORTH REMEMBERING. 609 00:34:16,688 --> 00:34:19,489 Man: WE'VE SEEN A BINARY SYSTEM THAT IS A WHITE DWARF -- 610 00:34:19,491 --> 00:34:21,792 WHICH IS THE CORE OF A STAR LIKE THE SUN 611 00:34:21,794 --> 00:34:23,326 AFTER IT'S GOTTEN VERY OLD, 612 00:34:23,328 --> 00:34:26,797 BLOWN OFF ITS OUTER LAYERS -- THAT'S ORBITED BY A BROWN DWARF, 613 00:34:26,799 --> 00:34:28,198 AN OBJECT WHICH IS SORT OF ON THE BORDER 614 00:34:28,200 --> 00:34:30,734 BETWEEN A PLANET AND A STAR. 615 00:34:30,736 --> 00:34:36,206 Narrator: WHAT'S MOST EXCITING ABOUT THE SDSS 1557 SYSTEM 616 00:34:36,208 --> 00:34:40,610 IS THAT WE'VE FOUND ROCKY DEBRIS. 617 00:34:40,612 --> 00:34:42,212 WE SEE THE BASIC MATERIALS, 618 00:34:42,214 --> 00:34:45,649 THE BASIC INGREDIENTS ARE THERE FOR FORMING PLANETS. 619 00:34:45,651 --> 00:34:47,150 THIS IS A REALLY EXCITING DISCOVERY 620 00:34:47,152 --> 00:34:49,252 BECAUSE WE'VE SEEN THE REMNANTS OF ASTEROIDS 621 00:34:49,254 --> 00:34:52,722 AND ROCKS ORBITING ABOUT THIS ANCIENT BINARY SYSTEM, 622 00:34:52,724 --> 00:34:56,093 SYSTEMS THAT WE THOUGHT COULD'VE NEVER HAD SURVIVING 623 00:34:56,095 --> 00:34:58,495 ROCKY-TYPE THINGS AROUND IT BEFORE. 624 00:35:00,566 --> 00:35:04,601 Narrator: THIS BINARY SYSTEM IS BILLIONS OF YEARS OLD, 625 00:35:04,603 --> 00:35:06,570 AND THROUGH ALL THAT TIME, 626 00:35:06,572 --> 00:35:11,274 THE ROCKY MATERIAL HASN'T BEEN WIPED OUT. 627 00:35:11,276 --> 00:35:13,510 IT HAS SURVIVED. 628 00:35:13,512 --> 00:35:18,181 THIS IS A HUGE STEPPING STONE TO FINDING OUR ROCKY PLANET 629 00:35:18,183 --> 00:35:21,651 WITH TWO SUNS. 630 00:35:21,653 --> 00:35:23,987 THE SYSTEM PROVIDES EVIDENCE THERE'S ROCKY MATERIAL 631 00:35:23,989 --> 00:35:26,857 CLOSE IN AROUND A BINARY STAR SYSTEM, 632 00:35:26,859 --> 00:35:29,826 SO IT'S A SIGNPOST THAT ROCKY PLANET FORMATION 633 00:35:29,828 --> 00:35:33,196 CAN OCCUR AROUND BINARY STAR SYSTEMS. 634 00:35:33,198 --> 00:35:37,534 THE ODDS MIGHT BE LONGER, BUT IT'S STILL POSSIBLE. 635 00:35:37,536 --> 00:35:42,372 Narrator: COULD THERE EVEN STILL BE A PLANET IN THIS SYSTEM? 636 00:35:42,374 --> 00:35:47,177 THERE MAY STILL BE PLANETARY OBJECTS AROUND SDS 1557. 637 00:35:47,179 --> 00:35:50,080 WE JUST HAVEN'T SEEN THEM YET, BUT THEY MAY STILL BE THERE. 638 00:35:50,082 --> 00:35:56,686 ♪♪ 639 00:35:56,688 --> 00:36:00,157 Narrator: THE SEARCH IS STILL ON. 640 00:36:00,159 --> 00:36:04,794 A ROCKY PLANET ORBITING TWO STARS COULD REALLY EXIST. 641 00:36:06,832 --> 00:36:09,432 SO, FOR THOSE OF US HOPING FOR THAT TATOOINE OUT THERE, 642 00:36:09,434 --> 00:36:11,601 THAT PLANET WITH THE DOUBLE SUNSET, 643 00:36:11,603 --> 00:36:13,937 THESE DEBRIS FIELDS ACTUALLY GIVE US HOPE. 644 00:36:13,939 --> 00:36:16,973 MAYBE THE CONDITIONS, AT LEAST, ARE RIGHT FOR THE FORMATION 645 00:36:16,975 --> 00:36:20,143 OF ROCKY PLANETS AROUND BINARY STARS. 646 00:36:20,145 --> 00:36:21,511 I THINK IT'S OUT THERE. 647 00:36:21,513 --> 00:36:24,581 I THINK FINDING IT IS MORE A QUESTION OF WHEN THAN IF. 648 00:36:24,583 --> 00:36:28,318 AS AN ASTRONOMER, THIS IS A FANTASTIC TIME TO BE ALIVE 649 00:36:28,320 --> 00:36:29,953 AT THE CUSP OF DISCOVERY. 650 00:36:29,955 --> 00:36:33,557 AS A SCIENCE FICTION FAN, THIS IS A FANTASTIC TIME TO BE ALIVE 651 00:36:33,559 --> 00:36:36,293 BECAUSE THE STUFF I READ AS A KID IS COMING TRUE. 652 00:36:36,295 --> 00:36:38,895 ♪♪ 653 00:36:38,897 --> 00:36:42,599 Narrator: BUT PERHAPS THE BIGGEST SCI-FI FANTASY 654 00:36:42,601 --> 00:36:45,835 IS MUCH CLOSER TO HOME, 655 00:36:45,837 --> 00:36:50,473 BECAUSE NEW RESEARCH IS SUGGESTING SOMETHING STUNNING -- 656 00:36:50,475 --> 00:36:54,411 OUR OWN SUN COULD HAVE A TWIN. 657 00:36:58,951 --> 00:37:07,958 ♪ BECAUSE NEW RESEARCH IS SUGGESTING SOMETHING STUNNING -- 658 00:37:07,960 --> 00:37:12,162 Narrator: A NEW STUDY IN 2017 THROWS INTO QUESTION 659 00:37:12,164 --> 00:37:14,598 OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE SUN. 660 00:37:14,600 --> 00:37:18,668 ♪♪ 661 00:37:18,670 --> 00:37:21,171 FOR THE FIRST TIME NOW, ASTRONOMERS ARE ABLE TO PEER 662 00:37:21,173 --> 00:37:23,907 INSIDE THE CLOUDS THAT FORM STARS, 663 00:37:23,909 --> 00:37:26,810 AND THE AMAZING THING IS THAT THE EVIDENCE IS SUGGESTING 664 00:37:26,812 --> 00:37:30,847 THAT EVERY SINGLE SUN-LIKE STAR FORMS AS PART OF A BINARY PAIR. 665 00:37:32,684 --> 00:37:37,187 Narrator: THE SCIENTISTS STUDY THE PERSEUS MOLECULAR CLOUD, 666 00:37:37,189 --> 00:37:41,091 A STELLAR NURSERY AROUND 750 LIGHT YEARS FROM US, 667 00:37:41,093 --> 00:37:44,027 PACKED WITH STARS JUST LIKE OUR SUN. 668 00:37:46,732 --> 00:37:49,833 MANY OF THEM ARE IN WIDE BINARY SYSTEMS, 669 00:37:49,835 --> 00:37:52,602 TRAVELING IN HUGE ORBITS AROUND EACH OTHER 670 00:37:52,604 --> 00:37:57,040 THAT SPAN CENTURIES OR MORE. 671 00:37:57,042 --> 00:38:00,510 AND ALL OF THESE BINARIES ARE BABIES, 672 00:38:00,512 --> 00:38:04,848 LESS THAN 500,000 YEARS OLD. 673 00:38:04,850 --> 00:38:08,118 THE ONLY WAY TO EXPLAIN THESE YOUNG SYSTEMS 674 00:38:08,120 --> 00:38:13,990 IS THAT THEY FORMED THIS WAY -- NOT ALONE, BUT IN A PAIR. 675 00:38:13,992 --> 00:38:18,028 ♪♪ 676 00:38:18,030 --> 00:38:20,830 Woman: JUST BASED ON STATISTICS AND OUR UNDERSTANDING 677 00:38:20,832 --> 00:38:23,433 OF WHAT'S GOING ON INSIDE THESE STAR-FORMING CLOUDS, 678 00:38:23,435 --> 00:38:26,469 IT IS HIGHLY LIKELY THAT THE SUN FORMED WITH A TWIN. 679 00:38:26,471 --> 00:38:29,105 ♪♪ 680 00:38:29,107 --> 00:38:32,309 Narrator: PERHAPS 4.5 BILLION YEARS AGO, 681 00:38:32,311 --> 00:38:35,478 OUR SUN BURST INTO LIFE WITH A SIBLING. 682 00:38:37,716 --> 00:38:40,183 COULD THIS TWIN STILL BE OUT THERE 683 00:38:40,185 --> 00:38:43,553 IN A DISTANT ORBIT THAT WE HAVEN'T SEEN? 684 00:38:45,824 --> 00:38:49,192 Man: THERE WAS AN IDEA THAT THE SUN COULD HAVE A COMPANION, 685 00:38:49,194 --> 00:38:51,061 WHICH WAS NICKNAMED NEMESIS, 686 00:38:51,063 --> 00:38:53,963 AND THIS THING WOULD'VE ORBITED WAY FAR OUT, 687 00:38:53,965 --> 00:38:57,901 WAY PAST NEPTUNE IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM. 688 00:38:57,903 --> 00:39:01,638 Narrator: SCIENTISTS SEARCHED FOR THIS NEMESIS STAR, 689 00:39:01,640 --> 00:39:05,075 BUT THEY CAME BACK EMPTY HANDED. 690 00:39:05,077 --> 00:39:08,411 WE'VE LOOKED -- WE'VE HAD TELESCOPIC SURVEYS OF THE SKY, 691 00:39:08,413 --> 00:39:11,514 INCLUDING INFRARED SURVEYS WHERE THESE TYPES OF OBJECTS 692 00:39:11,516 --> 00:39:13,283 WOULD BE VERY BRIGHT, 693 00:39:13,285 --> 00:39:17,153 AND WE'VE SWEPT THE ENTIRE SKY MULTIPLE TIMES 694 00:39:17,155 --> 00:39:19,222 AND WE'VE SEEN NOTHING. 695 00:39:19,224 --> 00:39:23,026 ♪♪ 696 00:39:23,028 --> 00:39:28,264 Narrator: WHAT HAPPENED TO OUR SUN'S SIBLING IS A MYSTERY. 697 00:39:28,266 --> 00:39:32,202 HOW DO WE END UP WITH ONE STAR AS OPPOSED TO BINARY? 698 00:39:32,204 --> 00:39:35,338 WE REALLY DON'T QUITE UNDERSTAND. 699 00:39:35,340 --> 00:39:37,273 Narrator: IF IT DOESN'T ORBIT US NOW, 700 00:39:37,275 --> 00:39:41,711 IT MAY HAVE LEFT OUR SYSTEM LONG AGO. 701 00:39:41,713 --> 00:39:43,947 OVER TIME, SOME OF THESE BINARY STARS 702 00:39:43,949 --> 00:39:46,149 GET CLOSER TOGETHER AND STAY TOGETHER, 703 00:39:46,151 --> 00:39:49,219 AND OTHERS GET RIPPED APART AND LOSE EACH OTHER ENTIRELY. 704 00:39:49,221 --> 00:39:52,922 IT'S VERY POSSIBLE THAT OUR SUN, AT SOME POINT, 705 00:39:52,924 --> 00:39:56,960 HAD A TWIN THAT GOT EJECTED. 706 00:39:56,962 --> 00:39:59,095 Woman: WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHEN 707 00:39:59,097 --> 00:40:00,897 OUR SISTER STAR WAS TORN AWAY. 708 00:40:00,899 --> 00:40:03,166 IT COULD BE CLEAR ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE GALAXY 709 00:40:03,168 --> 00:40:06,436 FROM US BY NOW. 710 00:40:06,438 --> 00:40:10,440 Narrator: BUT AFTER EVERYTHING WE'VE SEEN IN BINARY SYSTEMS, 711 00:40:10,442 --> 00:40:13,109 WE MAY BE MUCH BETTER OFF WITHOUT IT. 712 00:40:15,147 --> 00:40:16,980 I'M PRETTY HAPPY WITH HAVING JUST ONE SUN, 713 00:40:16,982 --> 00:40:21,117 SO I'M FINE TO LIVE IN THIS SOLAR SYSTEM. 714 00:40:21,119 --> 00:40:23,887 A BINARY SUNSET WOULD BE MORE BEAUTIFUL, 715 00:40:23,889 --> 00:40:27,557 BUT ONLY MORE BEAUTIFUL IF YOU WERE ALIVE. 716 00:40:27,559 --> 00:40:29,793 Narrator: AND YET BINARY STARS 717 00:40:29,795 --> 00:40:32,896 DON'T JUST BRING DEATH AND DESTRUCTION. 718 00:40:32,898 --> 00:40:35,265 THEY COULD ALSO CREATE SYSTEMS 719 00:40:35,267 --> 00:40:39,803 WITH A SERIES OF HABITABLE WORLDS. 720 00:40:39,805 --> 00:40:42,305 THERE'S SO MUCH WE DON'T KNOW ABOUT OUR OWN ENVIRONMENT 721 00:40:42,307 --> 00:40:44,941 AND HOW IT COMPARES TO OTHER PLACES IN THE UNIVERSE. 722 00:40:44,943 --> 00:40:47,076 IT SEEMS LIKE WE'RE IN A VERY LUCKY PLACE. 723 00:40:47,078 --> 00:40:49,846 THE SUN IS VERY STABLE, IT'S A SINGLE STAR, 724 00:40:49,848 --> 00:40:51,714 WE'RE IN A NICE ORBIT AROUND IT, 725 00:40:51,716 --> 00:40:54,317 BUT MAYBE THERE ARE PLACES OUT THERE THAT ARE EVEN BETTER. 726 00:40:54,319 --> 00:40:56,152 WE JUST DIDN'T EVEN KNOW TO ASK. 727 00:40:58,356 --> 00:41:00,890 Narrator: IT'S CERTAINLY POSSIBLE 728 00:41:00,892 --> 00:41:04,127 THAT TWO STARS ARE BETTER FOR LIFE THAN ONE, 729 00:41:04,129 --> 00:41:07,964 BUT UNTIL WE FIND THESE ALIEN WORLDS, 730 00:41:07,966 --> 00:41:11,034 IT REMAINS AN OPEN QUESTION. 731 00:41:13,572 --> 00:41:16,005 IT'S HARD TO SAY WHETHER WE'RE LUCKY OR UNLUCKY 732 00:41:16,007 --> 00:41:18,041 TO BE ON A PLANET ORBITING A SINGLE STAR. 733 00:41:18,043 --> 00:41:20,276 IT'S PROBABLY A LITTLE BORING HERE 734 00:41:20,278 --> 00:41:22,645 COMPARED TO WHAT IT WOULD SEEM LIKE 735 00:41:22,647 --> 00:41:24,848 IN THESE BINARY STAR SYSTEMS. 736 00:41:27,519 --> 00:41:30,420 YOU KNOW, FROM A ROMANTIC, VISUAL PERSPECTIVE, 737 00:41:30,422 --> 00:41:34,390 I KIND OF WISH WE DID LIVE IN A BINARY STAR SYSTEM. 738 00:41:34,392 --> 00:41:37,660 CAN YOU IMAGINE SOMEBODY LIVING ON A CIRCUM-BINARY PLANET 739 00:41:37,662 --> 00:41:40,930 AND FINDING AN EARTHLIKE PLANET ORBITING A SOLITARY STAR. 740 00:41:40,932 --> 00:41:42,765 WOULD THEY THINK, "OH, HOW INTERESTING THAT WOULD BE. 741 00:41:42,767 --> 00:41:45,435 CAN YOU IMAGINE HAVING ONE SUNSET? 742 00:41:45,437 --> 00:41:46,636 WHAT WOULD THAT LOOK LIKE?" 743 00:41:46,638 --> 00:41:48,738 I CAN IMAGINE THEM ASKING THEMSELVES 744 00:41:48,740 --> 00:41:50,974 THE QUESTIONS WE ASK OURSELVES. 745 00:41:50,976 --> 00:41:53,276 SO IT'S JUST A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE, YOU KNOW? 746 00:41:53,278 --> 00:41:56,246 GRASS IS ALWAYS GREENER ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE BINARY SYSTEM. 747 00:41:56,248 --> 00:42:00,550 ♪♪ 66365

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