PIA13833: Kepler-11 Planetary System (Artist Concept)
 Mission:  Kepler
 Product Size:  3300 x 2550 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  IPAC-Caltech
 Other  
Information: 
JPL News Release 2011-036
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA13833.tif (25.25 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA13833.jpg (229.9 kB)

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This artist's concept shows Kepler-11 -- the most tightly packed planetary system yet discovered.

About the Movie
The star appears to blink in a pattern. It dims like clockwork as six "hands" of differing size orbit around it at different rates. Kepler-11 dims when its six orbiting planets cross between it and the Kepler spacecraft. Calculations show the planets are nested in circular orbits that lie in almost the same plane.

Image Credit:
NASA/Ames/JPL-Caltech

Image Addition Date:
2011-02-02