All Questions
53 questions
3
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2
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548
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Is it possible, by monitoring the brightness of stars, to find a “copy of the Earth + Moon” near them?
More than a dozen Earth-like planets have been discovered around nearby stars based on observations of changes in the brightness of their sun as they pass across its disk (transit events). If an Earth-...
- 168
0
votes
1
answer
37
views
SETI: Are there holes in the EM spectrum that are quiet enough to communicate at decently large distances?
So this is a variant of this other question.
I know stars are big, they radiate a lotta energy, they have spectral lines. But how dense are these spectral lines and is there a noise floor at ...
- 1,733
2
votes
1
answer
62
views
Is this scientifically useful exoplanet transit data? [closed]
For a physics project, I am trying to derive properties of exoplanets through their transit light curve. I tried to get the data myself, on the known exoplanet Qatar-6b.
My Equipment:
8" Newt. ...
0
votes
1
answer
126
views
Where can I find datasets for all confirmed exoplanets, terrestrial exoplanets, and Super-Earth exoplanets?
"The NASA Exoplanet Archive" (https://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/) implies that there are 5,197 confirmed exoplanets. The "5,197 Confirmed Planets 11/02/2022" link leads to ...
1
vote
0
answers
30
views
How to obtain exoplanets transmission spectra from JWST's NIRISS data of WASP96?
I was having a look at JWST's NIRISS data of WASP96 (specifically at the x1dints fits file which should be already calibrated). From this, I would like to obtain a result in a fashion similar to the ...
- 69
0
votes
1
answer
33
views
Is the transit technique for exoplanet detections part of the "Wide-Field Precision Photometry Revolution"?
In a exoplanet focused lecture I was informed that the two main techniques for the detection of exoplanets were: radial velocity (VR) and transit. These were very briefly explained to us.
When ...
- 759
0
votes
1
answer
56
views
How would I see if there is a transit in this light curve?
I am trying to detect if some binary star systems have exoplanets orbiting them. I've been completing this project for many weeks now, and have managed to write some code that will plot light curves ...
- 1
4
votes
2
answers
208
views
Are there planets orbiting something else than a star?
Exoplanet is a planet that orbits a star different from our Sun.
Are there any planets (that we know of) which orbit something else? (Like different giant planet or black hole or maybe neutron star.)
- 269
2
votes
3
answers
1k
views
How can spectroscopy be used to find the composition of exoplanet atmospheres?
How can astronomers use light spectroscopy to measure the composition of different planets when they can't directly image the planet because the star that they are orbiting is so much bigger and ...
- 117
43
votes
2
answers
7k
views
Is our solar system really that odd?
I have been learning about the solar system from popular science shows. In these shows they suggest that, after having seeing around 2500 other solar systems, astronomers have concluded that our ...
- 1,430
-1
votes
2
answers
98
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Did we adapt to Earth or Earth to us? [closed]
I often hear that Earth is a unique planet because it has life and it has its own inhabitance. We also see a proper balance between plants and humans and other animals. Why life is not possible on ...
- 12.1k
0
votes
1
answer
40
views
Infrared Telescopes and Surface Area
I have been reading a paper on about exoplanets, specifically measuring the temperature of exoplanets using infrared telescopes.
The paper compares exoplanets with neutron stars (NS) remarking that ...
- 129
0
votes
2
answers
67
views
How to track orbit of an exoplanet?
I was wondering if there is an established method to keep track of the orbit of an exoplanet assuming we know $a$ - the semi-major axis of the orbit, $e$ - the eccentricity of the orbit, and $i$ - the ...
- 500
0
votes
0
answers
33
views
Research on exoplanets using available data from TESS
I am a high school student who is proposing research on exoplanets for my junior research project, I have several questions:
I have seen studies where researchers survey star systems and then find ...
2
votes
1
answer
158
views
Proxima Centauri radio signal
I have recently seen an article about an unusual radio signal coming from Proxima Centauri region.
I understand there is a debate around the nature of this signal.
My question is related to this ...
- 611
0
votes
0
answers
89
views
Datasets for calculation of exoplanet properties
I would like to create program for calculation exoplanet properties, but I only found transit dataset from Kepler on NASA website. From light curve I can calculate:
planet radius $r$ from $\frac{r_{...
- 51
1
vote
1
answer
46
views
Which planets of our solar system could be discovered from another solar system with present technology?
Recently many exoplanets have been found orbiting nearby stars. Assume there is a civilization with identical technology residing in a nearby (< 100 light years) solar system. Could they discover ...
- 1,251
0
votes
2
answers
2k
views
How do Astronomers Measure the Mass of a Planet using Doppler Spectroscopy?
So, I am making an essay explaining planet-hunting techniques. And while I do get how astronomers measure the semi-major axis of a planetary orbit (using Kepler Laws), I don't get how they measure the ...
- 835
1
vote
1
answer
43
views
Can a planemo turn into a star?
I read this question
Why is planet CFBDSIR2149-0403 hot?
and wonder what will happen to this "planemo". Will it attract more mass as it flows around in the gas clouds in space and eventually light ...
- 439
2
votes
0
answers
102
views
What orbit does a planet have to have to be a planet? [closed]
Other questions have dealt with where you could find a planet-like object, and what a planet has to consist of to count as a planet. But this question is directed as what orbit or path an object would ...
- 121
1
vote
1
answer
58
views
How does TESS focus on bright nearby stars?
How does the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite "focus on" bright nearby stars, in contrast to the Kepler Mission's focus on dim distant stars?
I understand that the fields of view of the two ...
- 5,169
2
votes
1
answer
162
views
Doppler method for detecting exoplanets
Why does the Doppler method for detecting exoplanets only give the minimum mass for the exoplanet and not the actual mass?
Is it to do with whether the exoplanet is a face on orbit or a side on ...
- 579
20
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Can we know if an exoplanet has a magnetic field?
The recent discovery of the exoplanet Proxima b gave rise to several questions concerning its habitability and its potential to host life. A major concern is the huge amount of radiation coming from ...
- 1,264
15
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What is the farthest planetary body or star system object we have observed using visual light?
What is the farthest object which we can get a direct Detailed visual image of using visible light which appears more than just a dot and falls into one of the following categories:
Planet
Satellite
...
- 838
78
votes
6
answers
10k
views
How can we see planets thousands of light years away but don't know if there are more planets in the solar system?
That is basically my question, it arose when I saw an article (here is the scientific paper, which should be free to read) saying two Caltech scientists might have found the 9th planet of the solar ...
- 1,768
1
vote
1
answer
2k
views
Finding radius of an exoplanet's orbit knowing orbital period and star's mass [closed]
I've been stuck on this question in an assignment for a while now, and I can't seem to find anything on the internet that either deals with a question in which more values are provided, or where the ...
- 11
3
votes
1
answer
87
views
Have we observed sufficient extra-solar planetary systems to establish a planetary distribution pattern? [duplicate]
From Kepler And Extra-Solar Planetary Observations
As of January 2015, Kepler and its follow-up observations had found 1,013 confirmed exoplanets in about 440 stellar systems, along with a further ...
user81619
2
votes
1
answer
219
views
Calculating the size of exoplanets with moons
When astronomers detect an exoplanet using its transit and calculate its size to be, say twice the earths size, do they have any way of knowing that its actually not a slightly smaller planet with a ...
- 303
2
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Density of a planet
I was wondering, how would you find out about the mass and the density of a planet and what the planet is made of?
Finding out about the mass might be possible, because you can observe the movements ...
- 253
14
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What would we see if we looked at our Solar system from 2,000 light years away with our current technology?
Assuming the tables were turned and we would live in a system like Kepler-422/423/424, some 2,000 ly away. If we'd look at the Solar system with a telescope like Kepler and using techniques like ...
- 209
1
vote
1
answer
143
views
Non-discoveries by the Kepler space telescope: exomoons, co-orbital planets, trojans
I am just reading the review article Advances in exoplanet science from Kepler (arxiv preprint: http://arxiv.org/abs/1409.1595), and I found a remarkable paragraph (last paragraph in section "...
- 781
2
votes
2
answers
157
views
For a planet which has a temperature gradient, hot in the center and cooler on the surface, why do we get absorption lines?
For a planet which has a temperature gradient, hot in the center and cooler on the surface, why do we see absorption lines?
Similarly, why do we see emission lines if the planet is hot on the ...
- 1,015
1
vote
1
answer
4k
views
Is there a simple formula for calculating semimajor axis bounds of "habitable zone"?
I understand that an accurate determination of the bounds of the "habitable zone" for a given stellar system depends on a large number of factors, including many beyond characteristics of the parent ...
- 5,169
8
votes
1
answer
4k
views
What is the percentage of stars with planetary systems
We have discovered quite a number of exoplanets to date. The Kepler spacecraft has examined 150,000 stars and found 1,059 exoplanets.
We know that Kepler, as well as all other exoplanet searches to ...
- 11.2k
10
votes
2
answers
315
views
How close would Earth have to be for us to detect it was habitable, and then inhabited?
Given our current technology (or technology that is near implementation), how close would a clone of our Solar System (and so also Earth) have to be to us in order to detect that the cloned Earth was ...
- 6,987
7
votes
1
answer
420
views
Are there rogue planets between Sun and Proxima Centauri?
Would we be able to detect (via emitted radiation, or its gravity) a rogue planet between us and Proxima Centauri? How big would that planet need to be?
- 275
1
vote
2
answers
396
views
Is there anyone calculate the probability of extrasolar planets?
After reading an recent news "Stargazers capture first picture of a planet with two suns – just like Luke Skywalker’s home planet of Tatooine in Star Wars", I am thinking that: can we calculate the ...
- 116
4
votes
1
answer
536
views
What day/night cycles, climate and seasons would experience Alpha Centauri Bb inhabitants?
Alpha Centauri Bb is an exoplanet orbiting Alpha Centauri B. It is asserted that given the close distance to the star the planet should be tidally locked.
The orbiting period of the planet is about ...
- 11.3k
2
votes
1
answer
154
views
Alpha Centauri Bb: Comparing astrometric precision vs Doppler precision
How do you compare astrometric precision vs Doppler spectroscopic precision?
In particular, will the Gaia spacecraft to be launched next year be able to confirm the existence of Alpha Centauri Bb? I.e....
- 869
14
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Do any naked-eye stars have planets
Are there any known exoplanets around naked-eye stars? I know that Fomalhaut has a planet, and Vega has a dust belt that may be a protoplanetary disk or even analogous to our Kuiper belt. What else is ...
- 4,543
5
votes
1
answer
135
views
Is there an established standard for naming exoplanets?
I understand that exoplanets are named by adding a lowercase letter to the a designation of the planet's parent star or stellar system, beginning with 'b' (the star itself is 'a') in order of ...
- 5,169
7
votes
1
answer
332
views
How are exoplanets confirmed?
In reference to the Kepler 22b news:
The Kepler team had to wait for three passes of the planet before
upping its status from "candidate" to "confirmed".
This is possible because the planet has ...
- 6,987
14
votes
2
answers
691
views
Why did population III stars lack planets?
Jay Wacker1 (professor of physics at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory) stated:
The first stars (known as Pop III) were made out of hydrogen and helium. They had no planets.
Why couldn't ...
- 2,350
3
votes
1
answer
103
views
What could this very dark planet be made of?
I was reading about the planet TrES-2b which is less reflective than charcoal. What could possibly be its composition?
- 6,082
14
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What percent of planets are in the position that they could be viewed edge-on from Earth? (and thus able to undergo transits)
Star number 12644769 from the Kepler Input Catalog was identified as
an eclipsing binary with a 41-day period, from the detection of its
mutual eclipses (9). Eclipses occur because the orbital ...
- 3,662
3
votes
2
answers
218
views
Is angular resolution important when we want the spectra of an Earth-like exoplanet?
Right now, our resolution + light gathering power are still far too low to take direct images of exoplanets, so we're limited to subtracting the planet spectra from the parent star spectra when the ...
- 3,662
4
votes
1
answer
94
views
Do stars of higher metallicity have more planets in highly-inclined Pluto-like orbits?
In an answer to a previous question of mine, one that asked about the planar orbits of inner planets, I was told the following (emphasis mine):
On the subject of different solar systems, I would ...
- 3,662
9
votes
3
answers
5k
views
Are we capable of discovering planets in the Andromeda galaxy?
I just watched this SpaceRip video on YouTube which shows pictures taken by Hubble while looking into the disk of the Andromeda galaxy to study a certain type of variable star. It occurred to me that ...
- 5,091
0
votes
2
answers
92
views
Study of exoplanets reaching saturation point [closed]
In recent exoplanet meeting The Next 40 Years of Exoplanets, it was mentioned a few times that the field/topic is becoming saturated.
In what ways is it becoming saturated, and can you see the effect ...
- 235
8
votes
3
answers
359
views
Is a rogue 'exoplanet' classed as a exoplanet?
Given that the term planet strictly (according to the IAU) refers to a body around the sun, rogue planets can't be called that, so I assume they must be called rogue exoplanets?
But do they even ...
- 6,987