National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO): Stars come in a tremendous size range, from many tens of times bigger than the Sun to a tiny fraction of its size. But the answer to just how small an astronomical body can be, and still be a star, has never been known. What is known is that objects below this limit are unable to ignite and sustain hydrogen fusion in their cores: these objects are referred to as brown dwarfs. Using observations from the SOAR 4.1-m telescope and the SMARTS 0.9-m tele...
National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO): Stars come in a tremendous size range, from many tens of times bigger than the Sun to a tiny fraction of its size. But the answer to just how small an astronomical body can be, and still be a star, has never been known. What is known is that objects below this limit are unable to ignite and sustain hydrogen fusion in their cores: these objects are referred to as brown dwarfs. Using observations from the SOAR 4.1-m telescope and the SMARTS 0.9-m tele...
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