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Press Room 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 Archive All News News Conferences Public Affairs Office David Aguilar (617) 495-7462 Christine Pulliam (617) 495-7463 pubaffairs@cfa	Press Release Release No.: 2011-15For Release: Monday, May 23, 2011 How to Learn a Star's True Age Using the unique capabilities of NASA's Kepler space telescope, Soren Meibom (CfA) and his collaborators measured the rotation rates for stars in a 1-billion-year-old cluster called NGC 6811. They found rotation periods ranging from 1 to 11 days (with hotter, more massive stars spinning faster), compared to the 30-day spin rate of our Sun. More importantly, they found a strong relationship between stellar mass and rotation rate, with little scatter. This result confirms that gyrochronology is a promising new method to learn the ages of isolated stars. Credit: Anthony Ayiomamitis Low Resolution Image (jpg) Artist's conception of a hypothetical exoplanet. Gyrochronology is a promising new method to learn the ages of isolated stars, including all stars known to have planets. Credit: David A. Aguilar (CfA) High Resolution Image (jpg) Low Resolution Image (jpg) Back to Press Release
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