Extended Data Fig. 2: Astrometric motion of b Cen (AB)b and the background stars.
From: A wide-orbit giant planet in the high-mass b Centauri binary system
The image shows the astrometric motion of the three point sources detected around b Cen, in the reference frame of b Cen itself. Squares show the locations of background star 1 at epochs 2019 (purple) and 2021 (blue). Circles show the locations of background star 2 at the same epochs. Diamonds show the locations of b Cen (AB)b, both at the 2019 and 2021 epochs, but also in the 2000 epoch (green) where it could additionally be retrieved. Gray tracks show a representative collection of orbits that fit the observed motion of b Cen (AB)b. The insets zoom in on the locations around background star 1 (upper left inset), background star 2 (upper right inset), and the confirmed planet b Cen (AB)b (lower left inset). The filled symbols are the measured locations, while the open symbols show the projected motion expected for a static background object (which would follow the dashed trajectories over time), where 2021 is chosen as the reference epoch.
