Visual binary
A visual binary is a gravitationally bound system that can be resolved into two stars with the aid of a telescope. These stars are estimated, via Kepler's 3rd law, to have periods ranging from a number of years to thousands of years. A visual binary consists of two stars, usually of a different brightness. Because of this, the brighter star is called the primary and the fainter one is called the companion. If the primary is too bright, relative to the companion, this can cause a glare making it difficult to resolve the two components. However, it is possible to resolve the system if observations of the brighter star show it to wobble about a centre of mass. In general, a visual binary is resolved into two stars with a telescope if their centres are separated by a value greater than or equal to one arcsecond.