Category: exoplanets

Most exoplanets detected by radial velocity methods are gas giants orbiting close to the host star

June 25, 2021

Transit method is the predominant technique for detecting exoplanets orbiting stars. Based on detecting the small dip in starlight as an exoplanet pass in front of the host star, development of sensitive detectors has afforded the detection of a large number of exoplanets hitherto thought not to exist. But, there exists other methods for the … More Most exoplanets detected by radial velocity methods are gas giants orbiting close to the host star

Most exoplanets are discovered by the transit method

January 27, 2020

Exoplanets around other star systems were hypothesized many years before they were first discovered in the mid-1990s. Specifically, the first exoplanet discovered was via the radial velocity technique that measured the wobble in the parent star as the planet orbits around the host star. Determined to be a hot Jupiter which has a close-in orbital … More Most exoplanets are discovered by the transit method

Transit method for detecting exoplanet

September 7, 2018

By detecting a small dip in the intensity of starlight when a planet transits in front of the star, the transit method has been used in detecting exoplanets around stars. Specifically, both Earth-based and space telescopes had detected exoplanets using the transit method, but the method requires confirmation through repeated observations.   Planets orbit around … More Transit method for detecting exoplanet

What is a super-Earth in exoplanet research?

November 25, 2017

Super Earth refers to planets with a rocky core that has a radius of between 1.5 to 2 of that of Earth. They represent a class of exoplanets of significant scientific interest given the possibility of Earth-like habitability with respect to life, and is a target for observation by both space-based and Earth-based observatories. Thus … More What is a super-Earth in exoplanet research?

Global network of standardized telescopes for time domain astronomy

August 16, 2017

Feature article in Science, Vol. 356, Issue 6337, pp. 476-479, “A global robotic telescope network helps astronomers keep up with the fast-changing sky”   Summary of article: Using standardized telescopes of diameter between 2 meter and 40 centimeters, a global network of automated telescopes lend clarity to distant stars, galaxies and even exoplanets through the … More Global network of standardized telescopes for time domain astronomy

Our moon is bigger in size to Pluto, but it is not a planet. What defines a planet?

July 24, 2017

Our moon’s diameter is 3476 km (Link), which is larger than that of Pluto, which stands at 2370 km (Link). Hence, can our moon be a planet? Answer is yes, if our moon orbits in a circular or slightly elliptical orbit around a star. It is our moon because it orbits around our planet, Earth. … More Our moon is bigger in size to Pluto, but it is not a planet. What defines a planet?