Exoplanet
- All
- News
- Videos
- Web Stories
-
NASA Prepares 2025 Carruthers Mission to Explore Earth’s Hidden Hydrogen Halo
NASA’s Carruthers Geocorona Observatory, launching in 2025, will capture ultraviolet light from hydrogen atoms to map Earth’s faint geocorona. Operating a million miles sunward, it will study how solar activity drives atmospheric loss, improves satellite protection, and reveals clues to planetary habitability, providing critical insight for fut...
-
Not Like Venus Or Mars, Distant Exoplanet May Have Atmosphere Like Earth's
A distant exoplanet might have an atmosphere similar to Earth's, early observations from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) suggest. It is part of a group of planets orbiting a star called TRAPPIST-1, about 40 light-years away from Earth.
-
NASA Confirms Discovery of 6,000 Exoplanets Beyond Our Solar System
NASA has confirmed 6,000 exoplanets beyond our solar system, highlighting three decades of accelerating discovery. From scorching hot Jupiters to worlds with jewel-like clouds, the catalog reflects cosmic diversity. Future missions aim to identify true Earth analogs and investigate signs of life across distant planetary systems.
-
Chinese Astronomers Search for Extraterrestrial Signals in TRAPPIST-1 System
Chinese scientists turned the world’s most sensitive radio telescope, FAST, toward the TRAPPIST-1 system, a promising site for alien life with seven rocky planets. Although no signals were detected, the study set new limits on possible extraterrestrial transmissions and highlighted advanced techniques driving today’s search for intelligent life...
-
Diamond 'Super-Earth' May Not Be Quite as Precious as Once Thought, Study Finds
New research challenges the idea that 55 Cancri e, once dubbed a “diamond planet”, is rich in carbon. Re-analysing telescope data, scientists concluded that the host star has a lot more oxygen than originally believed, making the possibility that its planet formed with a carbon-dominant atmosphere less likely.
-
Exoplanets Explained: How Astronomers Find Worlds Orbiting Stars Beyond the Sun
Exoplanets are planets orbiting stars outside our solar system, hidden by stellar glare and detected indirectly. Astronomers identify them by tracking star wobbles or dips in brightness during planetary transits. NASA’s Kepler mission revealed thousands, with TESS now expanding the search. These discoveries confirm that planetary systems are abun...
-
Astronomers Propose Rectangular Telescope to Hunt Earth-Like Planets
Astronomers are exploring a revolutionary space telescope design with a long, narrow primary mirror instead of a traditional circular one. A 20×1 m rectangular mirror concentrates resolution along its length, enabling it to separate Earth-like planets from their stars at ~30 light-years in infrared light. Rotating the telescope 90° captures plane...
-
Breakthrough Photo: See The 'Birth' Of A Planet For The Very First Time
A team of astronomers has detected for the first time a planet outside our solar system, embedded in a cleared gap of a multi-ringed disc.
-
NASA Telescope Detects Possible Signs Of Alien Life On Distant 'Water World'
Researchers using the Webb telescope found traces of two gases, dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and dimethyl disulfide (DMDS), in the atmosphere of K2-18b, a planet 124 light-years away.
-
A New 'Earth' Next Door? Scientists Detect Possible Habitable Planet Around Closest Sun-Like Star
Astronomers using JWST have detected a giant exoplanet in the habitable zone of Alpha Centauri A, our nearest Sun-like star.
-
NASA Missions Uncover a Diverse Galaxy of Super-Earths, Raising New Questions About Planetary Evolution
Super-Earths are among the most common planets in the galaxy, yet none exist in our solar system. Larger than Earth but smaller than Neptune, they range from ocean-covered worlds to scorched, atmosphere-less rocks. Some orbit within habitable zones, making them prime candidates for life. NASA’s Kepler and TESS missions, along with upcoming telesc...
-
Habitable Zone Explained: The ‘Goldilocks Zone’ Where Life-Friendly Planets May Exist
The habitable zone, or “Goldilocks zone”, is the region around a star where conditions allow liquid water to exist. Varying with star type, this zone is key in the search for life. Earth’s location in the Sun’s habitable zone has made life possible, and astronomers seek similar rocky exoplanets in other systems to explore the possibility of...
-
James Webb Telescope Detects Potential Gas Giant Exoplanet Just 4 Light-Years Away
Astronomers using JWST have spotted a possible gas giant orbiting Alpha Centauri A, only 4 light-years away. If confirmed, it would be the closest exoplanet to a Sun-like star ever imaged. The discovery could challenge current models of planetary formation in binary systems and open new opportunities for studying nearby worlds.
-
Scientists Explore Role of Space Radiation in Powering Alien Microbial Life
A new study proposes that life may exist far from sunlight in a “radiolytic habitable zone” deep beneath the icy surfaces of Mars, Europa, and Enceladus. Cosmic rays, which can penetrate rock and ice, break water molecules apart to release hydrogen, oxygen, and energy-rich electrons. These can fuel microbes in subsurface water, much like bacter...
-
New Rogue Planet Discovered in Hubble Data Using Einstein’s Gravity Theory
Astronomers discovered a rogue planet hidden in Hubble’s archival data using gravitational microlensing based on Einstein’s theory. The event, OGLE-2023-BLG-0524, lasted just eight hours and lacked signs of a host star, suggesting the planet might be truly free-floating.
-
NASA Prepares 2025 Carruthers Mission to Explore Earth’s Hidden Hydrogen Halo
NASA’s Carruthers Geocorona Observatory, launching in 2025, will capture ultraviolet light from hydrogen atoms to map Earth’s faint geocorona. Operating a million miles sunward, it will study how solar activity drives atmospheric loss, improves satellite protection, and reveals clues to planetary habitability, providing critical insight for fut...
-
Not Like Venus Or Mars, Distant Exoplanet May Have Atmosphere Like Earth's
A distant exoplanet might have an atmosphere similar to Earth's, early observations from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) suggest. It is part of a group of planets orbiting a star called TRAPPIST-1, about 40 light-years away from Earth.
-
NASA Confirms Discovery of 6,000 Exoplanets Beyond Our Solar System
NASA has confirmed 6,000 exoplanets beyond our solar system, highlighting three decades of accelerating discovery. From scorching hot Jupiters to worlds with jewel-like clouds, the catalog reflects cosmic diversity. Future missions aim to identify true Earth analogs and investigate signs of life across distant planetary systems.
-
Chinese Astronomers Search for Extraterrestrial Signals in TRAPPIST-1 System
Chinese scientists turned the world’s most sensitive radio telescope, FAST, toward the TRAPPIST-1 system, a promising site for alien life with seven rocky planets. Although no signals were detected, the study set new limits on possible extraterrestrial transmissions and highlighted advanced techniques driving today’s search for intelligent life...
-
Diamond 'Super-Earth' May Not Be Quite as Precious as Once Thought, Study Finds
New research challenges the idea that 55 Cancri e, once dubbed a “diamond planet”, is rich in carbon. Re-analysing telescope data, scientists concluded that the host star has a lot more oxygen than originally believed, making the possibility that its planet formed with a carbon-dominant atmosphere less likely.
-
Exoplanets Explained: How Astronomers Find Worlds Orbiting Stars Beyond the Sun
Exoplanets are planets orbiting stars outside our solar system, hidden by stellar glare and detected indirectly. Astronomers identify them by tracking star wobbles or dips in brightness during planetary transits. NASA’s Kepler mission revealed thousands, with TESS now expanding the search. These discoveries confirm that planetary systems are abun...
-
Astronomers Propose Rectangular Telescope to Hunt Earth-Like Planets
Astronomers are exploring a revolutionary space telescope design with a long, narrow primary mirror instead of a traditional circular one. A 20×1 m rectangular mirror concentrates resolution along its length, enabling it to separate Earth-like planets from their stars at ~30 light-years in infrared light. Rotating the telescope 90° captures plane...
-
Breakthrough Photo: See The 'Birth' Of A Planet For The Very First Time
A team of astronomers has detected for the first time a planet outside our solar system, embedded in a cleared gap of a multi-ringed disc.
-
NASA Telescope Detects Possible Signs Of Alien Life On Distant 'Water World'
Researchers using the Webb telescope found traces of two gases, dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and dimethyl disulfide (DMDS), in the atmosphere of K2-18b, a planet 124 light-years away.
-
A New 'Earth' Next Door? Scientists Detect Possible Habitable Planet Around Closest Sun-Like Star
Astronomers using JWST have detected a giant exoplanet in the habitable zone of Alpha Centauri A, our nearest Sun-like star.
-
NASA Missions Uncover a Diverse Galaxy of Super-Earths, Raising New Questions About Planetary Evolution
Super-Earths are among the most common planets in the galaxy, yet none exist in our solar system. Larger than Earth but smaller than Neptune, they range from ocean-covered worlds to scorched, atmosphere-less rocks. Some orbit within habitable zones, making them prime candidates for life. NASA’s Kepler and TESS missions, along with upcoming telesc...
-
Habitable Zone Explained: The ‘Goldilocks Zone’ Where Life-Friendly Planets May Exist
The habitable zone, or “Goldilocks zone”, is the region around a star where conditions allow liquid water to exist. Varying with star type, this zone is key in the search for life. Earth’s location in the Sun’s habitable zone has made life possible, and astronomers seek similar rocky exoplanets in other systems to explore the possibility of...
-
James Webb Telescope Detects Potential Gas Giant Exoplanet Just 4 Light-Years Away
Astronomers using JWST have spotted a possible gas giant orbiting Alpha Centauri A, only 4 light-years away. If confirmed, it would be the closest exoplanet to a Sun-like star ever imaged. The discovery could challenge current models of planetary formation in binary systems and open new opportunities for studying nearby worlds.
-
Scientists Explore Role of Space Radiation in Powering Alien Microbial Life
A new study proposes that life may exist far from sunlight in a “radiolytic habitable zone” deep beneath the icy surfaces of Mars, Europa, and Enceladus. Cosmic rays, which can penetrate rock and ice, break water molecules apart to release hydrogen, oxygen, and energy-rich electrons. These can fuel microbes in subsurface water, much like bacter...
-
New Rogue Planet Discovered in Hubble Data Using Einstein’s Gravity Theory
Astronomers discovered a rogue planet hidden in Hubble’s archival data using gravitational microlensing based on Einstein’s theory. The event, OGLE-2023-BLG-0524, lasted just eight hours and lacked signs of a host star, suggesting the planet might be truly free-floating.
