LkCa 15 is surrounded by a protoplanetary disk, typical of many T Tauri stars.[7] The disk around the star is about 55 times more massive than Jupiter,[8] and consists of three major belts (components).[4] Small changes in the observed brightness of the disk may be due to a planetary companion; the star was believed to have a protoplanetary object or exoplanet orbiting it, known as LkCa 15 b[9][10] This name stems from an older survey.[11] Later, the existence of up to three planets was suspected. The planets' existence was refuted in 2019 as higher resolution imaging became available.[4]
LkCa 15 b is a candidate protoplanetary object in orbit around LkCa 15, a star in the Taurus-Auriga Star Forming Region. Its potential discovery was effected by direct imaging techniques using the Keck II telescope in 2011 by Adam Kraus and Michael Ireland.[9] A 2015 study of observations from the Magellan Telescopes and the Large Binocular Telescope argued that the planet is forming through accretion.[10] It would be the first observed exoplanet seen in the process of active accretion.[12] The planet’s existence was refuted in 2019 as higher resolution imaging became available.[4]
^ abThalmann, C.; Mulders, G. D.; Hodapp, K.; Janson, M.; Grady, C. A.; Min, M.; De Juan Ovelar, M.; Carson, J.; Brandt, T.; Bonnefoy, M.; McElwain, M. W.; Leisenring, J.; Dominik, C.; Henning, T.; Tamura, M. (2014). "The architecture of the Lk Ca 15 transitional disk revealed by high-contrast imaging". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 566: A51. arXiv:1402.1766. Bibcode:2014A&A...566A..51T. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201322915. S2CID34485844.
