JWST is Powerful Enough to See a Variety of Biosignatures in Exoplanets
According to a new study, JWST is powerful enough to detect the chemicals in the atmospheres of various terrestrial planets and could give a hint if there’s life there.
Moons Orbiting Rogue Planets Could be Habitable
A new study reveals how rogue planets could have “Ocean World” moons that may support life.
A New Mission Will Search for Habitable Planets at Alpha Centauri
The TOLIMAN space telescope will search for exoplanets next door, and has contracted with EnduroSat to make that happen.
Planets Might Protect their Water Until their Star Settles Down
Creating rocky planets is a messy, dangerous, hot business. Planetesimals accrete together, which creates heat and pressure on the newborn world. The nearby adolescent star bombards them with intense radiation. That likely “bakes off” any surface oceans, lakes, or rivers, which is a disaster if you’re looking for places where life might arise or exist. …
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TESS Shows That Even Small Stars Can Host Giant Planets
Can low-mass stars play host to giant, Jupiter-sized planets? Theories of planet formation suggest that it’s highly unlikely. But a team of scientists in the UK found that it’s possible, though rare.
Stars Can Eat Their Planets…and Spit Them Back Out Again
As tragic as it is, engulfment of a planetary object by its stellar parent is a common scenario throughout the universe. But it doesn’t have to end in doom. A team of astrophysicists have used computer simulations to discover that planets can not only survive when their star eats them, but they can also drive …
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59 New Planets Discovered in Our Neighborhood
The CARMENESE Consortium just released the first collection of data, which revealed 59 new exoplanets and doubled the number of known planets around Red Dwarf suns.
Machine Learning is a Powerful Tool When Searching for Exoplanets
A new machine learning technique will help astronomers detect young exoplanets in disks surrounding other stars.
Hubble and Spitzer Team up to Find a Pair of Waterworld Exoplanets
Using data from Hubble and Spitzer, an international team has discovered two new waterworlds in one system.
Are Planets Tidally Locked to Red Dwarfs Habitable? It’s Complicated
Astronomers are keenly interested in red dwarfs and the planets that orbit them. Up to 85% of the stars in the Milky Way could be red dwarfs, and 40% of them might host Earth-like exoplanets in their habitable zones, according to some research. But there are some problems with their potential habitability. One of those …
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