Kepler Input Catalog facts for kids
The Kepler Input Catalog (or KIC) is a huge database of stars. It was created to help the Kepler space telescope find planets outside our solar system. This catalog lists about 13.2 million stars that Kepler could potentially study.
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What is the Kepler Input Catalog?
The Kepler Input Catalog is like a giant phone book for stars. Scientists needed a detailed list of stars to help the Kepler telescope choose which ones to observe. Before KIC, there wasn't a good enough catalog with all the information they needed.
This catalog gives scientists important details about each star, such as:
- Its size (radius)
- Its mass
- How hot it is (effective temperature)
- What it's made of (metallicity)
- How much dust is between us and the star (reddening extinction)
Even though the KIC lists 13.2 million stars, the Kepler telescope could only observe about 4.5 to 6.5 million of them. This is because only a part of the catalog was in Kepler's view.
How KIC Helps Find Planets
The KIC is very important for finding new planets. When Kepler looked at a star and saw its light dim regularly, it could mean a planet was passing in front of it. This event is called a "transit."
Kepler Objects of Interest
When a star from the KIC shows signs of a possible planet transit, it gets a special name: a Kepler Object of Interest (KOI).
- For example, the star KIC #10227020 was first listed in the KIC.
- After transit signals were found, it became KOI-730.
- Once scientists confirmed the planets around it, the star was officially named Kepler-223.
Not every star with confirmed planets gets a KOI name. Sometimes, other telescopes or scientists find the transit signals, not just the Kepler team. An example of such a star is Kepler-78b.
Unusual Stars in KIC
The KIC also includes some very interesting stars. One famous example is KIC 8462852, also known as Tabby's Star. Its light changes in a very strange way that scientists don't fully understand. Some people even wondered if it could be caused by a huge structure built by an alien civilization!
