Transmission spectroscopy is an important technique to probe the atmospheres of exoplanets. With the advent of TESS and, in the future, of PLATO, more and more transiting planets around bright […]
exoplanet
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets
How to Find a Planet from Transit Variations
Here we describe a story behind the discovery of Kepler-46, which was the first exoplanetary system detected and characterized from a method known as the transit timing variations (TTVs). The […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes
Directly Imaging Rocky Planets from the Ground
Over the past three decades instruments on the ground and in space have discovered thousands of planets outside the solar system. These observations have given rise to an astonishingly detailed […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Press Release
The ExoEarth Yield Landscape for Future Direct Imaging Space Telescopes
The expected yield of potentially Earth-like planets is a useful metric for designing future exoplanet-imaging missions. Recent yield studies of direct-imaging missions have focused primarily on yield methods and trade […]
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets, Press Release
Life Could Be Evolving Right Now on Nearest Exoplanets
Rocky, Earth-like planets orbiting our closest stars could host life, according to a new study that raises the excitement about exoplanets. When rocky, Earth-like planets were discovered orbiting in the […]
Posted inAstrobiology (general), Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Missions & Hardware, NASA Astrobiology Program, Policy, Press Release, Reports, Roadmaps, & Plans
Report: An Astrobiology Strategy for the Search for Life in the Universe
Astrobiology is the study of the origin, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe. It is an inherently interdisciplinary field that encompasses astronomy, biology, geology, heliophysics, and planetary […]
Posted inHabitable Zones, Press Release
Transit Ly-Ī± Signatures Of Terrestrial Planets In The Habitable Zones Of M Dwarfs
We modeled the transit signatures in the Lya line of a putative Earth-sized planet orbiting in the HZ of the M dwarf GJ436. We estimated the transit depth in the […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Press Release
Enlarging Habitable Zones Around Binary Stars In Hostile Environments
Habitable zones are regions around stars where large bodies of liquid water can be sustained on a planet or satellite. As many stars form in binary systems with non-zero eccentricity, […]
Posted inBarnard's Star, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Press Release
Habitable Zone Planet Finder Enables Discoveries Around Cool Stars
A new astronomical spectrograph built by a Penn State-led team of scientists provides the highest precision measurements to date of infrared signals from nearby stars, allowing astronomers to detect planets […]
Posted inHabitable Zones, Press Release
Multiverse Predictions for Habitability: Number of Habitable Planets
How good is our universe at making habitable planets? The answer to this depends on which factors are important for life: Does a planet need to be Earth mass? Does […]