def parse_coords(string):
    """
    Retrieve coordinates from the string.

    Parameters
    ----------
    string : str
        the string to parse
    
    Returns
    -------
    coords : list(float, float, str)
        list containing RA, Dec, and coordinate system description
    """
    ra = float(string.split()[0])
    dec = float(string.split()[1])
    coord_sys = string.split(None, 2)[2].strip()
    coords = [ra, dec, coord_sys]
    return coords