Exoplanet atmospheres
Planning is Underway for NASA’s Next Big Flagship Space Telescope
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has only been operational for just over a year, but this isn’t stopping the…
Has the First Biosignature Been Found on an Exoplanet?
Astronomers have found tentative evidence of a biosignature on an alien world, but we are far from proving that extraterrestrial…
If Earth Was an Exoplanet, JWST Would Know There's an Intelligent Civilization Here
JWST is the most powerful instrument astronomers have to study the atmospheres of exoplanets, looking for trace gases that might…
Astronomers Confirm First Exoplanet “Thermometer Molecule” that is Typically Used to Study Brown Dwarfs
A recent study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters examines a rare alloy molecule known as chromium hydride (CrH) and…
How Will We the Find First Signs of Alien Life — and When?
When will we find evidence for life beyond Earth? And where will that evidence be found? University of Arizona astronomer Chris…
This Hot Jupiter is Leaving a Swirling Tail of Helium in its Wake
In a recent study published in Science Advances, a team of researchers commissioned the Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET), which is designed…
JWST Scans an Ultra-Hot Jupiter’s Atmosphere
When astronomers discovered WASP-18b in 2009, they uncovered one of the most unusual planets ever found. It's ten times as…
JWST Looks at the Atmosphere of a Stormy, Steamy Mini-Neptune
Just because there's no Mini-Neptune in our Solar System doesn't mean they're not common. They appear to be widespread throughout…
JWST Tries to Untangle the Signals of Water. Is it Coming From the Planet or the Star?
Using Webb, a team of scientists may have detected water vapor in a rocky exoplanet's atmosphere (though the signal may…
Finally, JWST's Data on the First TRAPPIST-1 Planet. Survey Says? It Sucks
With the James Webb Space Telescope’s ability to detect and study the atmospheres of distant planets orbiting other stars, exoplanet…