System
Rigel has been a known visual binary since at least 1831, when it was first measured by F. G. W. Struve. Though Rigel B is not particularly faint at magnitude 6.7, its closeness to Rigel A—which is over 500 times brighter—makes it a challenging target for telescopes smaller than 150 mm (5.9 in). However a good 7 cm telescope will reveal Rigel B at 150x power and good seeing. At Rigel's estimated distance, Rigel B is separated from its primary by over 2200 AU (12 lightdays); not surprisingly, there has been no sign of orbital movement, though they share the same proper motion.
Rigel B is itself a spectroscopic binary system, consisting of two main sequence stars that orbit their center of gravity every 9.8 days. The stars both belong to the spectral class B9V; Rigel B is the more massive of the pair, at 2.5 versus 1.9 solar masses.
There was long-running controversy in the late 19th and early 20th century over the possible visible binarity of Rigel B. A number of experienced observers claimed to see it as a double, while others were unable to confirm it; indeed, the proponents themselves were sometimes unable to duplicate their results. Observations since have ruled out the likelihood of a visible companion to Rigel B.
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