Record-holder
Kepler-16
A real-world Tatooine — a planet orbiting two stars at once.
- Planets
- 1
- Distance
- 244.9 ly
- Host
- G-type
About Kepler-16
Discovery
Kepler-16 b was announced in 2011 by Laurance Doyle and colleagues in Science — the first unambiguous detection of a circumbinary planet, found by Kepler tracking transits across both stars of an eclipsing binary.
Why it matters
Kepler-16 b proved Tatooine-style worlds are real: a Saturn-mass planet on a stable orbit around two stars at once, settling decades of theoretical debate about whether circumbinary planets could survive.
Current research
Subsequent Kepler and TESS discoveries have built up a small but growing population of circumbinary planets, and Kepler-16 remains the textbook example for dynamical-stability studies.
Comparable to
Tatooine made real — a Saturn-sized planet whose sky has two suns rising and setting on different schedules.
System geometry
At a glance
- Hostname
- Kepler-16
- Spectral type
- G2V
- Distance
- 244.9 ly · 75.09 pc
- Stellar mass
- 0.69 M☉
- Stellar radius
- 0.65 R☉
- Luminosity
- 0.125 L☉
- Effective temp
- 4450 K
- Confirmed planets
- 1
- Habitable zone
- 0.336 – 0.484 AU
Top-down orbital diagram
Orbits to scale within this system. Dashed green = habitable-zone edges.
Planet positions are illustrative (evenly spaced in phase). For live motion see the 3D scene.
The planets
1 confirmed.
Gas giant
Kepler-16 b
- Orbit
- 0.705 AU
- Period
- 228.78 days
- Radius
- 8.45 R⊕
- Mass
- 105.83 M⊕
- Eq. temperature
- —
- Eccentricity
- 0.007
- Discovered
- 2011 · Transit
Compared to our Solar System
Each row shows the closest Solar-System analog by radius (log-space). Earth is pinned at the bottom as the constant frame of reference.
| Planet | Radius (R⊕) | Mass (M⊕) | Orbit (AU) | Period (days) | Eq temp (K) | Solar analog |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kepler-16 b | 8.45 | 105.83 | 0.705 | 228.78 | — | Saturn |
| Earth (reference) | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.000 | 365.25 | 255 | — |
Research status
◇ JWST observation status
No JWST programs are currently targeting planets in this system. The system may be observed in future cycles or by upcoming missions (Ariel, HWO, Roman).
Discovery timeline
- 2011
Kepler-16 b
via Transit
If you liked this
Other systems in the same theme:
PSR B1257+12
3 planets · 1956.9 ly · G2V
First exoplanets ever confirmed (1992) — orbiting a pulsar, not a normal star.
GJ 1132
2 planets · 41.1 ly · M4.5 V
A Venus analog 41 ly away — terrestrial world losing its atmosphere.
HD 189733
1 planets · 64.5 ly · K2 V
A blue planet — but the colour comes from glass rain in the upper atmosphere.
Experience it
See Kepler-16 in interactive 3D
Fly through the system, click any planet, watch orbits play out at 100× speed.
▶ Launch 3D scene