ZETA RETICULI

'Zeta Reticuli' (ζ Ret / ζ Reticuli) is a binary star system located about 39 light years away from Earth. It is located in the constellation Reticulum, and is visible to the unaided eye under very dark skies. Because of the southerly location of the system, it is not visible north of the tropics.

Contents

Characteristics

Zeta Reticuli in ufology

See also

External links

Astronomical links

Characteristics

Originally thought to be old galactic halo Population II subdwarfs, the two stars are now thought to be younger galactic disk stars, but still considerably older than the Sun, perhaps as much as 8 billion years old. They belong to the Zeta Herculis Moving Group. Both stars share similar proper motions and distances confirming that they indeed form a wide binary star. The stars are approximately 9,000 AU apart. The stars revolve around each other once in over a million years.
The stars, designated 'ζ¹ Reticuli' and 'ζ² Reticuli', are both yellow dwarf (main sequence) stars remarkably similar to our Sun. No close-in giant planets have been detected around either of the components, making Earth-like terrestrial planets possible. However, the stars are only 60% as enriched with metals as the Sun. Small, terrestrial planets around less metal-rich stars are less likely according to our current knowledge.
ζ¹ Reticuli is slightly less massive and luminous than the Sun. Spectral class of the star is G2.5 V.
ζ² Reticuli has a very similar mass and luminosity to our Sun. The spectral type of the star is G1 V. The star was suspected to have a close stellar companion, but it was deemed to be an instrument artifact.
On September 20, 1996 an extrasolar planet was announced orbiting the star. The planet would have a short orbit (0.14 AU) and mass of about 27% that of Jupiter. However, the discovery was quickly retracted as the signal was shown to be caused by pulsations of the star.

Zeta Reticuli in ufology

The Zeta Reticuli system has gained significant popularity because of its connection with ufology. Some ufologists allege that Zeta Reticuli is home to an alien civilization referred to as the Greys. They believe that Greys have been visiting Earth while abducting, studying, interacting with, and hybridizing humans; they cite the 1961 Betty and Barney Hill abduction as support for their claim. Years after the abduction, under hypnosis, Betty Hill drew a star map showing the relative positions of the aliens' home star and the Sun. UFO researcher Marjorie Fish soon claimed that the map indicated Zeta Reticuli as the aliens' home, although skeptics have pointed out that the map is too vague to accurately pinpoint any particular star at all. Fish's identifications of stars on the Gliese Catalog of solar type stars match the positions of the stars as viewed from Zeta Reticuli, according to Hill's drawn picture.
In an interview with George Knapp for a television documentary, Bob Lazar, the man who first described Area 51 as a secret UFO research facility, suggested that the UFO that he claimed to have helped reverse-engineer may have come from the vicinity of Zeta Reticuli. He claimed he learned this from United States Handbooks of E.B.E's (extra-biological entities) codes and conduct and from his superiors inside S-4. However Lazar also admits that this information may have been given to him in an attempt to misguide him. Critics point to many inconsistencies in Lazar's claims and he remains a controversial figure in the ufology world.

See also

★ Zeta Reticuli in fiction

External links

Astronomical links

★ SIMBAD ζ¹ Ret entry, ζ² Ret entry

★ Zeta 1 Reticuli at Stellar Database

★ Zeta 2 Reticuli at Stellar Database

★ Reticulum (the Net) at Sea and Sky

★ Zeta 1 Reticuli at AstroNexus

★ Zeta 2 Reticuli at AstroNexus

★ Zeta Reticuli at SolStation