Introduction to Multiple-Star Systems

A general introduction to worldbuilding with multiple-star systems.

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[placticine]

So I've been doing some exploring and I came across a trinary star orbit which looks like a figure-8. Supposedly the system is only stable if all 3 star masses are identical, but can self-right itself with minor perturbations. How plausible is a system like this and how would it affect building planets/dwarf planets/asteroid belts around it? Could planets orbit between the stars?

[robinchesterfield]

Well, there goes the planet from Isaac Asimov's "Nightfall"...not that it was _ever_ plausible. It orbits a SIX! star system, meaning that there's _always_ at least one star in the sky, usually more than one, and the people never see true night except once every 500 years. It turns out we do know of at least one real-life sexternary? system (Castor!) but the Nightfall planet would need to have the WEIRDEST, least stable orbit ever, get fried/ripped apart/thrown out/superflared on long before life could evolve on it, let alone complex humanoid life, or just never have existed.

(To be fair, Asimov never actually _said_ the people on that planet evolved there. They could've been human colonists from Earth, although why they'd settle _there_ of all places I don't know. I can just see the conversation on-board the colony ship now: "Hey, let's go land on that one!" "Bob1.4a, we've been over this a million times. It's in a six-star system. It'll fry us." "But it's PRETTY!")

[daniel_rossy_explica]

I know this is an OLD video, and Edgard probably would never see this comment, but I have a quesion related to what he said at 0:38. What is the upper mass-limit that a molecular cloud can have? I cannot find an answer on Google.

[ayushsharma]

Why don't you open a discord server?

[dionemoolman]

I heard that having three stars is enough to rack the system into chaos. There’s a fictional series of books called the three body problem, written by a Chinese physicist, where the whole setting is aliens in the Centauri system deciding to invade Earth as the multiple stars cause conditions on their planet to be terrible. Long story short, multiple star systems are not always the best idea.

[Ninjawolf]

Any advice on stars orbiting black holes and/or math to go with it? I want to know if it is mathematically possible to have a binary star system (P or S type, I haven't decided) that orbits a black hole without a decaying orbit.

[MrRyanroberson]

i just came back here scouring for resources...
just realized this video is quite loud

[russianspy]

So, what if I want to make a star system with one large, habitable planet in the center, being orbited by multiple stars, and multiple moons, some of which would ideally also be habitable.  What is the most interesting configuration possible in that vain?

[MrRyanroberson]

you know what would be cool? according to science and math, I can have a 1024 star system astronomically easy. since binary star pairs act as one in terms of gravity, a quad system is easiest as just two binary pairs, an 8 system would be similar in fashion, and in an imaginary setting (rogue star passes by and inserts itself into the system) they don't even all need to orbit around the same axes. an extremist would attempt to build an entire galaxy, and give the inhabitants a religion that says the gods made such a perfect harmonious system of 2^25 stars exactly (around normal for a spiral? but would be technically more irregular or even a blob)

[anthonycannet]

If the multi-star systems have the stars orbiting together around their combined center of mass, then technically it would be possible to have 1 planet in each system, regardless of the number of stars. The planet just has to be at/near that point and it will orbit the center with the stars. However 1: it is very very very unlikely (duh) and 2: the stars need to be orbiting far enough apart that they don’t get too close to the singular planet. Also, if the stars are somehow orbiting really far apart, it could be possible, although far far more unlikely, for a system of planets to also be orbiting that center of mass of the star system... just with the stars also in orbit and the center being “nothing”

[karenbalzer]

16th.(That’s interesting because 16=4^2)

[TojosWizzyWorld]

I know what created the Big bang.Do you want to know how the big bang was created from me?

[leonardoleo]

I don't care to these bullshit "rules". I make as many stars and planets as I want.

[ALLANX]

my people are smart we use mutiple-star systems as gas to fuel; we had to make planets/bases also grammar is for apes