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Stories about: exoplanets


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Two Earth-Like Planets Found Around Dying Star

Just a few days ago, astronomers operating the Kepler Telescope announced the discovery of the first two Earth-like worlds orbiting close to their parent star. That news drowned out another, revealing the existence of two additional Earth-like exoplanets around a dying star. What is interesting about these findings...

27 December 2011
07:46 GMT

Exoplanets That Survived Their Star's Death Found

The NASA Kepler Telescope discovered two extrasolar planets, called KOI 55.01 and KOI 55.02, which orbit in very close orbit around their star, a hot B subdwarf. What is remarkable about these findings is that the stellar object passed its red giant phase. This means that the star at one point began swelling up, sw...

22 December 2011
05:03 GMT

Artist Renderings of Two Earth-Like Exoplanets

Earlier today, I wrote a piece about the exoplanets Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f, which were found by the NASA Kepler Telescope about 1,000 light-years away. These objects, which you can now see in more detail, are the smallest exoplanets ever discovered. In fact, one of them is smaller than Earth. Kepler-20e has a ra...

21 December 2011
09:51 GMT

Smallest New Worlds Confirmed Around Sun-Like Star

Experts handling the science data return of the NASA Kepler Telescope announced yesterday, December 20, that the observatory was able to identify the first exoplanets that are nearly identical to Earth in size. The worlds are not located in their parent star's habitable zone. This is the second major discovery...

21 December 2011
03:09 GMT

Alien Exoplanet Distorts Own Star System

Investigators discovered that an extrasolar planet in the Beta Pictoris star system was responsible for a warping they had detected in the star's debris ring. At first, the team believed that the crookedness may have occurred as a result of a second exoplanet being present, but the new study shows that is not th...

9 December 2011
11:02 GMT

Gaia's Sunshield Deployed for the Very First Time

The European Space Agency's (EAS) Gaia spacecraft has recently achieved an impressive milestone in its development, when its sunshield was deployed for the very first time. Mission controllers say that the probe remains well on track for a 2013 launch. At first, the name Gaia stood for Global Astrometric Inter...

8 December 2011
04:42 GMT

Kepler Will Supply Even More Exoplanetary Candidates

During the Kepler Science Conference held at the NASA Ames Research Center (ARC), in Moffett Field, California, experts in charge of the mission said that the second batch of data the telescope sent back is unlikely to be its last. As such, we can expect it to discover even more exoplanets. On December 5, the missi...

7 December 2011
04:42 GMT

Total Exoplanet Count May Soon Rise to 2,300+

Analysts studying datasets relayed back by the NASA Kepler Telescope say that the number of false-positive results in the readings is very small. That is to say, there are very high chances that the vast majority of exoplanetary candidates the mission proposes will be confirmed. A false-positive result in this scen...

6 December 2011
08:41 GMT

Other Planets Could Literally Be Made of Diamonds

Scientists propose in a new study that certain extrasolar planets could be made out of diamond. Such worlds would most definitely be uninhabitable, since the conditions required to create this carbon compound are not exactly friendly to life. Ohio State University expert Wendy Panero believes that a world made out ...

6 December 2011
08:10 GMT

First Exoplanet Found Orbiting Inside Habitable Zone

Astronomers operating the NASA Kepler Telescope announce the discovery of the first extrasolar planet orbiting inside its parent star's habitable zone. The object is called Kepler-22b, and can be found in an area of its star system where temperatures are just right to support the presence of liquid water. This...

6 December 2011
02:35 GMT

New Earth Analog Could Well Be a Foundry

A team of experts handling the NASA Kepler Telescope recently announced the discovery of a new extrasolar planet, one that is so hot it could melt iron left unattended on its surface. The object, just 1.6 times larger than Earth, is located just 352 light-years away from the Sun. It's not often that astronomers...

2 December 2011
10:22 GMT

Life May Have Developed Influenced by Nuclear Reactors

Astrobiologists say that naturally-occurring nuclear reactors may have contributed, or at least influenced, the development of life here on Earth. Since the constructs occur by themselves, it is entirely possible that they exist on extrasolar planets as well. While the amount of data available on this issue is hazy...

2 December 2011
08:58 GMT

Flipping Exoplanets Found in Distant Binary System

A recent investigation of the 55 Cancri binary star system has revealed that five of the planets surrounding the largest star do somersaults in their orbits, over the course of millions of years. One of the gas giants leads the way, forcing the other four to follow suit. The planet in question, called 55 Cancri d, ...

1 December 2011
05:21 GMT

Greenhouse Effect Could Make Some Exoplanets Habitable

Hydrogen-rich atmospheres may be the key to having liquid water on the surface of a rocky exoplanet, even if the body is located up to 15 astronomical units from its parent star. A new study proposes that greenhouse effects can easily warm such a planet up to the point where it becomes habitable. Having liquid wate...

30 November 2011
04:58 GMT

Exoplanetary Auroras May Put Ours to Shame – Video

Taking CoRoT-2b as a reference point for hot Jupiter-class planets everywhere, NASA experts recently created a new video, hypothesizing about how auroras would look like on distant worlds. This particular exoplanet is located about 880 light-years away from Earth. However, it is located 97 percent closer to its par...

28 November 2011
10:40 GMT

Exorings Could Soon Be Detected Around Exoplanets

Some of the most interesting directions of research in astronomy include the discovery of extrasolar moons. But scientists say that finding extrasolar rings may also prove helpful in our quest for potentially-habitable ecosystems in space. Astronomers know that exorings exist around distant worlds simply because ga...

25 November 2011
06:56 GMT

Broaden the Search for E.T, Experts Urge

If we are serious about searching for extraterrestrial intelligence, then we should significantly widen our area of research, say experts. They explain that most efforts are currently focused on worlds that look just like our own, and add that this approach is very limiting. With recent studies showing that liquid ...

22 November 2011
09:40 GMT

Total Exoplanet Count Exceeds 700

Astronomers are excited to announce that worldwide databases now contain the names and locations of more than 700 extrasolar planets. These catalogs contain everything from small, Earth-like objects to massive gas giants and hot Jupiters. The first exoplanet was confirmed beyond any doubt back in 1992, and the pace...

22 November 2011
08:56 GMT

Rogue Black Holes Permeate the Milky Way

According to investigators, it could be that our galaxy is filled with black holes that wander about, consuming whatever comes in their path. Such objects may also be consuming extrasolar planets, of which billions may exist throughout the spans of the Milky Way. One of the most important things to keep in mind abo...

15 November 2011
05:15 GMT

WASP-14b Gives Insight on Hot Jupiters' Atmospheres

Astronomers using the NASA Spitzer Space Telescope were recently able to take a hard look at the extrasolar planet WASP-14b, and determine some of the most important characteristics of its atmosphere. The new findings are very important for understanding alien worlds. One of the most interesting thing experts behind...

15 November 2011
03:53 GMT

Kepler Telescope Barely in Contact with Ground Controllers

The Kepler Science Team will be hosting the First Kepler Science Conference ever between December 5-9, at the NASA Ames Research Center (ARC), in Moffett Field, California. The group will announce discoveries that were not included in the messages released since the last major update. At this point, the telescope i...

8 November 2011
06:34 GMT

Looking for City Lights May Reveal Alien Worlds

Two researchers recently published a new scientific paper, arguing that intelligent lifeforms on other planets could reveal their presence to use through the lights their cities emit. While the proposal has a lot of merit, it's also worth remembering that it operates on an important assumption. In order for the...

4 November 2011
03:26 GMT

NASA Kepler Telescope May Get New Lease on Life

Having already identified 1,235 exoplanetary candidates, the NASA Kepler Telescope has already proven its worth many times over. Officials at the American space agency are now considering methods of extending its mission by at least a few years. At this point, the instrument is scheduled to be retired from active d...

1 November 2011
08:09 GMT

Black Holes May Be Surrounded by Planetary Debris

According to the conclusions of a new study conducted by an international team of astronomers, it would appear that some of the weird, donut-shaped dust clouds observed around supermassive black holes may contain debris left behind by high-speed collisions between extrasolar planets and asteroids. The violent cosmic...

1 November 2011
07:08 GMT

Aerial View of Kepler Corn Maze Released

The Dell’Osso Family Farm in Lathrop, California, is now the home of an impressive corn maze, which was created based on the NASA Kepler Telescope mission. The space observatory was created to detect extrasolar planets around a batch of around 150,000 stars in the Milky Way. This new view of the corn field ...

29 October 2011
16:01 GMT

Three Exoplanets Found in Our Neighborhood

Astronomers at the Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) announce the discovery of three extrasolar planets in the Sun's neighborhood. Each of these objects is orbiting a giant, dying star. Using the Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET), investigators recently scrutinized the stars HD 240237, BD +48 738, and HD 9...

28 October 2011
03:52 GMT

JWST May Be Used to Detect Exoplanets

Engineers constructing the successor to the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope say that the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will also be able to detect exoplanets, in addition to being capable of seeing into the deepest corners of the Universe. Since the US House of Representatives proposed cutting funds for the deve...

26 October 2011
05:18 GMT

Youngest Exoplanet Discovered with Keck Telescope

A group of astronomers from the University of Hawaii and the Australian Astronomical Observatory (AAO) announce the discovery of what may very well be the youngest extrasolar planet ever found. The object is believed to be forming even at this point. Preliminary analyses indicate that the entire stellar system - w...

25 October 2011
06:59 GMT

This Is How Exoplanets May Look Like Under a Red Sun

Officials from the American space agency have just released a new artist's concept of how a three-exoplanet star system would look like if centered on a red dwarf star. These stellar objects have a smaller mass than the Sun, and are also smaller in size.Astronomers have been focusing exoplanet search efforts on ...

24 October 2011
18:31 GMT

Habitable Zones Around Red Dwarfs Larger Than First Thought

Scientists have recently established that habitable zones around red dwarf stars are in fact about 30 percent larger than initially reported. A habitable (or Goldilocks) zone is an area around a star where temperatures are just right to support the existence of liquid water on the surface of an object. Earth lies rig...

24 October 2011
10:59 GMT

Dark Matter Planets May Sustain Life

Astrophysicists believe that extrasolar planets located in regions dense in dark matter could represent the last bastion life can occupy as the Universe grows old. Scientists say that these objects remain warm even if they are not accompanied by a parent star. Dark matter alone is enough to heat them. Therefore, tril...

24 October 2011
05:49 GMT

Cool Exoplanet Imaged in Nearby Star System

Astronomers believe they may have just imaged the first extrasolar planet featuring an Earth-like, temperate climate. Such conditions are a must for the development of life, in addition to the existence of liquid water and the presence of a magnetosphere. Over the past couple of years, the number of exoplanets that a...

22 October 2011
08:01 GMT

Exoplanets Can Form Spiral in Stellar Protoplanetary Disks

According to an astronomer at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), in Greenbelt, Maryland, the presence of forming extrasolar planets around a young star can be detected by looking for spiral arms forming within the protoplanetary disk around said star.A protoplanetary disk is a circular structure forming aro...

19 October 2011
10:59 GMT

New Exoplanets Found in Old Hubble Data

Over the course of more than 20 years of observations, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has collected a volume of data that is incomparable to any other, in terms of scope, diversity and detail. While browsing through these data, experts recently found two new exoplanets,The discovery indicates a potential new app...

7 October 2011
00:51 GMT

Multiple Exoplanets Found Around the Star Kepler-18

Astronomers using the NASA Kepler Telescope have recently discovered several extrasolar planets in orbit around a nearby star, called Kepler-18. The three identified planets orbit closer to the surface of their parent star than Mercury does to the Sun. The investigators were led by expert Bill Cochran, who is an ...

5 October 2011
10:56 GMT

Many Sun-Like Stars Have Planets Inside Habitable Zones

According to the conclusions of a new astronomical study, it would appear that as many as one third of all Sun-like stars out there have extrasolar planets in orbit, revolving around their stars within the habitable zone. This area allows for the existence of liquid water on the planetary surface.The new number was c...

27 September 2011
21:31 GMT

Exoplanet Absorbs More Than 99.9 Percent of Incoming Light

Astronomers at the Princeton University and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) announce the discovery of the darkest extrasolar planet known to date. The object, called TrES-2b, absorbs more than 99.9 percent of all light shone on it. The celestial body is more massive than Jupiter, which place...

27 September 2011
07:56 GMT

Spitzer Finds Water on Exoplanet 55 Cancri e

During a recent study it conducted on the extrasolar super-Earth-class planet 55 Cancri e, the NASA Spitzer Space Telescope was able to produce a detailed view of the object that revealed several new details astronomers did not know before. This particular exoplanet is a super-sized and superheated version of our ...

27 September 2011
05:46 GMT

Confirmed Exoplanet Veers Off Course, Puzzling Experts

Speaking at a recent exoplanet conference in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, a team of experts set the international astronomical community ablaze when it reported that the established extrasolar planet Fomalhaut b moved in an unexpected, and theoretically impossible, way. As dozens upon dozens of exoplanets ...

23 September 2011
06:26 GMT

Internet Users Find Two New Exoplanets

Internet surfers using the online Planet Hunters project have recently discovered two new exoplanetary candidates, in a batch of data supplied by the NASA Kepler Telescope. Astronomers say that the discovery is now awaiting official confirmation, but that chances are very high the findings will stand. Thus far, p...

22 September 2011
03:21 GMT

NASA Selects Amazing Astrobiology Missions

The American space agency has a very broad agenda for its astrobiology programs, but recently its scope grew even more, after eight research projects were selected for further development under the Astrobiology Science and Technology for Instrument Development (ASTID) program. As a general rule, all instruments th...

21 September 2011
10:56 GMT

Earth-Moon Systems Form Relatively Frequently

A group of investigators at the University of Zürich, in Switzerland, working together with colleagues at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), in Pasadena, California, recently determined that as many as 1 in 12 terrestrial extrasolar planets may harbor a Moon-like natural satellite. UZ experts Sebastian El...

19 September 2011
11:04 GMT

Exoplanets Around Binary Stars May Be Common

Though it was only yesterday that astronomers operating the NASA Kepler Telescope announced the discovery of the first extrasolar planet orbiting two stars, experts are already extrapolating the results into new finding. At this point, some believe that exoplanets in such systems may be fairly common. If the numbe...

17 September 2011
04:41 GMT

Exoplanets Around White Dwarfs May Be Easiest to Spot

University of Washington associate professor of astronomy Eric Agol suggests that it may be a lot easier for astronomers to look for and identify extrasolar planets around ancient stars called white dwarfs. He says that exoplanets might reveal themselves a lot faster than usual at these locations. White dwarfs are...

16 September 2011
09:19 GMT

First Exoplanet Found Around Binary System

A group of astronomers including investigators from the Carnegie Institution for Science (CIS), in Washington, DC, announces the discovery of the first extrasolar planet found orbiting around a binary star system. The two stars are located very close to each other. From the surface of the newly-discovered planet, c...

16 September 2011
03:11 GMT

Star Found to Be Irradiating Its Host Planet

The results of a new astronomical investigation demonstrate that a nearby star is drenching the surface of its host extrasolar planet with massive amounts of X-ray radiations, about 100,000 times higher than what the Sun throws at us. This is a very significant discovery, as it paints the interactions between exo...

14 September 2011
03:58 GMT

Total Exoplanet Count Exceeds 600

Thanks to a recent study conducted by experts at the European Southern Observatory (ESO), the total number of confirmed extrasolar planets now exceeds 600. The investigation uncovered 50 exoplanets, of which 16 are part of the super-Earth class. One of the latter lies in its star's habitability zone. For the...

13 September 2011
07:35 GMT

HARPS Collaboration Identifies 50 New Exoplanets

The number of confirmed extrasolar planets just got bigger, thanks to a sustained effort by experts operating the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) High Accuracy Radial Velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS). In their latest study, the astronomers found no less than 50 new exoplanets. One of the most interesti...

13 September 2011
03:17 GMT

Exoplanetary 'Tug of War' Found in Nearby Star System

Astronomers believe they may have found signs of a stealthy extrasolar planet around the star Kepler-19, which is located about 650 light-years away. An exoplanet is already known to orbit this star, but the team says that a second one may also lurk, undetected as of yet. The group arrived at this conclusion afte...

9 September 2011
03:35 GMT

New Insights into How Exoplanets Form

German researchers recently published a new study, whose goal was to clear up a mystery related to data observed by telescopes looking for exoplanets. With additional researches in this field, it may soon be possible to gain a deeper understanding of how extrasolar planets form and evolve. In order to understand ...

6 September 2011
03:21 GMT


More: << previous 50 | next 50 >>

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