BINARY STAR

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does binary star mean? 

• BINARY STAR (noun)
  The noun BINARY STAR has 1 sense:

1. a system of two stars that revolve around each other under their mutual gravitation

  Familiarity information: BINARY STAR used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• BINARY STAR (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A system of two stars that revolve around each other under their mutual gravitation

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

Synonyms:

binary; binary star; double star

Hypernyms ("binary star" is a kind of...):

star ((astronomy) a celestial body of hot gases that radiates energy derived from thermonuclear reactions in the interior)

Instance hyponyms:

Aldebaran (the brightest star in Taurus)

Algol (the second brightest star in Perseus; the first known eclipsing binary)

Alpha Centauri; Rigil; Rigil Kent (brightest star in Centaurus; second nearest star to the sun)

Altair (double star 15.7 light years from Earth; the brightest star in the Aquila constellation)

Antares (the brightest star in Scorpius)

Epsilon Aurigae (the largest known star)

Procyon (the brightest star in Canis Minor)

Beta Orionis; Rigel (the brightest star in Orion)

Canicula; Dog Star; Sirius; Sothis (the brightest star in the sky; in Canis Major)

Vega (the brightest star in the constellation Lyra)

 Context examples 

It is part of a binary star system, meaning it moves around the galaxy with another star, both orbiting around the same central point.

(Astronomers discover smallest known star, Wikinews)

The binary star is about 1,800 light-years away in the Cygnus constellation, so what astronomers are observing now happened about 1,800 years ago.

(Star Explosion Could Change Night Sky, VOA News)

Earlier evidence that planets form in binary star systems came from NASA's Kepler and Spitzer space telescopes, but the planets and dust structures in those studies were not similar to those of Earth.

(Newfound Frozen World Orbits in Binary Star System, NASA)

In fact, the nebula contains a prominent cavity that was carved out by an energetic binary star system.

(Stellar Nursery Blooms into View, ESO)

Combined with data on the shapes of the surrounding cloud of dust, the scientists found 45 lonely stars, 19 binary star systems, and a further five that contained more than two stars.

(Our Sun Could Have Been Born With an Evil Twin Called "Nemesis", The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

They say it may be possible to see a binary star in the Cygnus constellation merge and explode in 2022, creating a red nova.

(Star Explosion Could Change Night Sky, VOA News)

This is the first evidence that terrestrial planets can form in orbits similar to Earth's, even in a binary star system where the stars are not very far apart.

(Newfound Frozen World Orbits in Binary Star System, NASA)