(Submitted April 02, 1998)
What percentage of the stars are binary systems?
Somebody once said that "2 out of every 3 stars are in a binary". Seriously, the fraction is very high, but it's difficult to be precise, because it's difficult to prove that a certain star is definitely single. Of the stars nearest to the Sun, about half are known to be in multiple systems.
for Ask an Astrophysicist
OK "space". That is better. Gozguyse5 helped a bit too.
So... let's go with 55% as a low value... It's interesting because most of the stars *I* hear about... are single stars. Is it that most stars are big ones with small companions? And so I don't hear about their small companion because it's not glamorous enough?
Either way... even if they DO have a small companion... a small companion is enough to cause havoc from time to time
seeing as "small" probably means "bigger than Jupiter".
Thanks for raising the possibility.
I don't consider it DEAD CERTAIN, for all that I know... that our solar system is binary. However... I do consider it POSSIBLE. That is good for you
As for what Gozguyse5 said about it explaining the Kuiper belt's formation... I'd have to look into the information you have.
I'd be interested in seeing guesses (based on math) on the likely mass, and orbital distance.
And... perhaps even a guess about the current position, although that's far less important, because it's harder to guess a position than an orbit.