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J. Norwood (Harvey Mudd College, Physics Dept.), N. Haghighipour (Carnegie Institution of Washington, DTM)
Recent observations of the nearby F8 V star \upsilon Andromedae have revealed that this star has a low-mass M4.5 V companion at approximately 750 AU (Lowrance et al, ApJ, 572, L79 (2002)). Because of its low mass and also its large distance, the effect of this binary companion on the dynamics of the \upsilon Andromedae extrasolar planetary system is negligible. However, as an example of an S-type binary-multiplanet system, it would be interesting to study the dynamics of this system and also to investigate the regions of stability and instability in its phase space.
Studies of the stability of S-type binary-planetary systems have been presented by several authors. In 1999, Holman and Wiegert studied the stability of a hypothetical system consisting of the Sun orbited by the four giant planets of our solar system and also a binary companion (ApJ, 117, 621). In this paper, we present the results of an extensive numerical study of the stability of \upsilon Andromedae system, considering the mutual interactions of its three planets and also including its binary companion. We show how varying the distance of the M4.5 V star will affect the dynamics of the system and we will also show how the locations of the stable and unstable regions of the phase space and their corresponding resonances will change with different values of the distance of the binary companion.
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 34, #3< br> © 2002. The American Astronomical Soceity.