Exoplanets

Temperamental Stars are Messing With Our Exoplanet Efforts

We have the transit method to thank for the large majority of the exoplanets we've discovered. When an exoplanet transits…

12 hours ago

Is Methane the Key to Finding Life on Other Worlds?

How would detecting methane help astronomers identify if exoplanets, or even exomoons, have life as we know it, or even…

4 days ago

White Dwarfs Pause Their Cooling, Giving Planets a Second Chance for Habitability

When a star like the Sun dies, it puffs away its outer layers, leaving behind its glowing core. Without fusion…

1 week ago

A Super-Earth to Test the Limits of Habitability

Every exoplanet discovery is an opportunity to refine models of planet formation, solar system architecture, habitable zones, and habitability itself.…

2 weeks ago

Massive Gas Giant Planets Locked in a Gravitational Struggle

A team of astronomers have discovered a rather curious exoplanetary system that has two gas giant planets that are messing…

2 weeks ago

It’s Time to Start Classifying Exoplanetary Systems

When an exoplanet is discovered, scientists are quick to describe it and explain its properties. Now, we know of thousands…

2 weeks ago

How Well Could Earth Life Survive on Exoplanets

Astronomers have found some pretty wild exoplanets. Some are balls of lava the temperature of hell, one is partially made…

2 weeks ago

Exoplanets Seen Falling Apart

Astronomers have found two planets around two separate stars that are succumbing to their stars' intense heat. Both are disintegrating…

2 weeks ago

Could Ocean Worlds Support Life?

There might be a type of exoplanet without dry land. They're called "Hycean" worlds, a portmanteau of 'hydrogen' and 'ocean.'…

3 weeks ago

Even More Planets Were Hiding in Kepler’s Fields

Kepler was one of the most successful exoplanet-hunting missions so far. It discovered 2,600 confirmed exoplanets - almost half of…

3 weeks ago