Astronomical evidence
Kepler-16 b orbits Kepler-16. The saved catalog gives an orbital period of 228.776 (+0.02/−0.037) days. Its discovery method is recorded as transit. These quantities describe the real astronomical setting behind the illustration. The orbit of Kepler-16 b surrounds both members of its stellar binary. Transits across moving stars are more complicated than a planet repeatedly crossing one stationary stellar disk: the timing and duration depend on where each star is when the planet passes. The binary and planet must be modeled together. The catalog radius is 8.4493 ± 0.0291 Earth radii. The mass entry is 105.833 ± 5.085 Earth masses. The source papers and full table retain the provenance of each parameter.
The illustrated viewpoint
The image uses an invented moon as its viewing platform. The large parent planet and two stellar lights express the real binary architecture, while the satellite, atmospheric sky and apparent arrangement are illustrative.
The image uses an invented moon as its viewing platform. The large parent planet and two stellar lights express the real binary architecture, while the satellite, atmospheric sky and apparent arrangement are illustrative. All depicted life and technology are fictional.
Catalog measurements & sources
Host: Kepler-16. Snapshot: 25 September 2026. Errors, limits and source provenance are retained. Calculated values and model estimates are not direct measurements. Unknown is not zero; equilibrium temperature is not surface temperature.
| Quantity / unit | Value / reported errors | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Radius · Earth radii | 8.4493 (+0.0291 / -0.0291) | Doyle et al. 2011 |
| Mass · Earth masses | 105.833 (+5.085 / -5.085) | Doyle et al. 2011 |
| Density · g/cm³ | 0.964 (+0.047 / -0.046) | Doyle et al. 2011 |
| Orbital period · days | 228.776 (+0.02 / -0.037) | Doyle et al. 2011 |
| Orbital semimajor axis · AU | 0.7048 (+0.0011 / -0.0011) | Doyle et al. 2011 |
| Eccentricity | 0.0069 (+0.001 / -0.0015) | Doyle et al. 2011 |
| Inclination · degrees | 90.0322 (+0.0022 / -0.0023) | Doyle et al. 2011 |
| Irradiation · Earth flux | 0.2517 (+0.0012 / -0.0012) | Calculated Value |
| Equilibrium temperature · K | 205.9 (+6.95 / -6.95) | Calculated Value |
| Stellar effective temperature · K | 4450 (+150 / -150) | Doyle et al. 2011 |
| Stellar radius · Solar | 0.6489 (+0.0013 / -0.0013) | Doyle et al. 2011 |
| Stellar mass · Solar | 0.6897 (+0.0035 / -0.0034) | Doyle et al. 2011 |
| Stellar luminosity · log Solar | -0.90301 (+0.00147 / -0.00148) | Gaia DR2 |
| Stellar age · Gyr | 3.8 (+3.7 / -3.7) | Q1-Q8 KOI Table |
| Stellar metallicity · dex | -0.3 (+0.2 / -0.2) | Doyle et al. 2011 |
| Distance · pc | 75.0852 (+0.1541 / -0.1536) | TICv8 |