Water worlds may be much more common in the universe than we thought
More than 5,000 exoplanets have been discovered and confirmed. But figuring out what they look like has been tricky.
Tag: exoplanet
James Webb Telescope snaps its first direct image of an exoplanet. Here’s why it’s such a big deal
Unlike other observations of alien worlds, this is a direct image. It sets the stage for more exciting exoplanet research.
Giant planet still forming around a nearby star could rewrite astronomy textbooks
Scientists have direct photographic evidence of a Jupiter-like protoplanet forming through an until now unproven mechanism.
Exoplanet count eclipses 5,000th discovery
The 5,000th exoplanet could just be the beginning.
New planet found “next door” to our solar system
The planet is close enough
Astronomers spy oblong-shaped planet
WASP-103b bucks the trend when it comes to planet shape.
AI is so good it can spot molecules on exoplanets. One day, it may discover new laws of phyics
AI can reliably spot molecules on exoplanets – and might one day even discover new laws of physics
Stellar pollution shows exoplanets are more diverse than we thought — but few are like Earth
Exoplanet composition may be much more varied and weird than we thought.
Astronomers find hidden planets in distant radio signals
The magnetic connection of the stars and unseen orbiting planets tipped off the astronomers.
Astronomers find moon-forming disk around exoplanet
The revolving disk holds enough matter to seed three moons the size of Earth's.
The largest planetary ring system we’ve found would dominate the sky — if it was in our solar system
When talking about planetary ring systems, Saturn and Jupiter likely spring to mind -- they are our closest ringed neighbors, ...
![An artist's conception of HD 209458 b, an exoplanet whose atmosphere is being torn off at more than 35,000 km/hour by the radiation of its close-by parent star. This hot Jupiter was the first alien world discovered via the transit method, and the first planet to have its atmosphere studied. [NASA/European Space Agency/Alfred Vidal-Madjar (Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris, CNRS)]](https://cdn.zmescience.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/247271_web-1-350x250.jpg)
Stellar flares can strip away the atmosphere of planets, make them less habitable
A new study highlights the importance of solar flares and space weather in reducing the habitability of exoplanets.
Astronomers stunned by hellish world where it rains rocks on oceans of molten lava
Scientists hope to verify their observations with the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope in 2021.
‘Lonely’ Rogue Planet Discovered Wandering the Milky Way
Astronomers have discovered a free-floating planet, not associated with any parent star wandering our galaxy.
New study lists 24 exoplanets that may be better for life than Earth
Isn't this a plot twist?
Machine learning helps identify 50 new exoplanets, more to come
It's not perfect yet, but it's still effective.
Rogue Planets Could Outnumber Stars in the Milky Way
We might have to revise the commonly accepted image of planets orbiting a parent star.
Astronomers may have found a twin solar system thousands of light-years away
Observations suggest that the exoplanet and its parent star are strikingly similar to Earth and the Sun.
Scientists find extreme exoplanet raining with iron
On this ultra-hot gas giant, the weather report for today is cloudy, with a chance of molten iron falling from ...
One year on this exoplanet lasts only 18 hours
The planet could fall into its host star in the next decade.