Orbital Stability of Planets in Binary Systems: A New Look at Old Results

TL;DR

This paper reviews the orbital stability of planets in binary star systems, critically examining existing theoretical criteria and their applicability to real-world observations.

Contribution

It provides a new analysis of the validity of classical stability criteria in the context of observed binary systems.

Findings

Classical stability criteria are evaluated against observational data.

The study identifies limitations of existing theoretical models.

Results suggest the need for refined stability conditions.

Abstract

About half of all known stellar systems with Sun-like stars consist of two or more stars, significantly affecting the orbital stability of any planet in these systems. This observational evidence has prompted a large array of theoretical research, including the derivation of mathematically stringent criteria for the orbital stability of planets in stellar binary systems, valid for the "coplanar circular restricted three-body problem". In the following, we use these criteria to explore the validity of results from previous theoretical studies.