Extrasolar Planets
Evil Empire Beware: Gas Giant Planets are Hard to Destroy
Last year, physicists worked out the plausibility of a fully functional (if not fictional) Death Star being able to destroy…
First Direct Observation of a Nearby Protoplanet
Astronomers have taken what is likely the first-ever direct image of a planet that is still undergoing its formation, embedded…
Smallest Exoplanet Yet Discovered by ‘Listening’ to a Sun-like Star
Scientists have discovered a new planet orbiting a Sun-like star, and the exoplanet is the smallest yet found in data…
Less Than 1% of Exoplanet Systems Have Intelligent Life, Researchers Say
Recent findings say that Earth-like exoplanets could be all around us in our cosmic neighborhood. But how many would be…
Kepler Spacecraft Back in Action After Reaction Wheel Problem
There has been some concern about the Kepler spacecraft after one of the devices that provide the ability for super-precise…
Nearly All Sun-Like Stars Have Planetary Systems
The latest analysis of data from the Kepler planet-hunting spacecraft reveals that almost all stars have planets, and about 17…
Five Planets Around Nearby Star Tau Ceti; One in Habitable Zone
The location of Tau Ceti in the night sky. Credit: University of Hertfordshire Look up in the sky tonight towards…
Other Solar Systems Might Be More Habitable Than Ours
This artist's impression shows the planetary system around the sun-like star HD 10180. Credit: ESO/L. Calçada Our Earth feels like…
Brown Dwarfs Might Host Planets Too
This image shows the brown dwarf ISO-Oph 102, or Rho-Oph 102, in the Rho Ophiuchi star-forming region. Its position is…
Astronomers Directly Image Distant Exoplanet
False color, near infrared image of the Kappa Andromedae system, by the Subaru Telescope. Almost all of the light of…