All Questions
Tagged with exoplanet or exoplanets
14 questions
16
votes
3
answers
2k
views
What is the probability that a star of a given spectral type will have planets?
There is a lot of new data from the various extrasolar planet projects including NASA's Kepler mission on extra-solar planets. Based on our current data what is the probability that a star of each of ...
- 6,467
7
votes
2
answers
510
views
Earliest terrestrial planet?
If I've understood correctly, the heavier elements needed for terrestrial planets such as iron can only form in supernova.
If that is indeed true, how long since the beginning of the universe would ...
- 692
5
votes
1
answer
167
views
Are the known exoplanets representative of the population of exoplanets?
An article about the recent release of a large number of confirmed exoplanets states that most of the 715 newly announced exoplanets orbit very close to their host stars.
Do the theories predict ...
- 16.7k
11
votes
1
answer
629
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How many earth-sized planets have been discovered outside the solar system?
How many earth-sized planets have been discovered outside our solar system? Is there a combined registry of them anywhere? Where might I look for more information?
- 779
9
votes
3
answers
1k
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Why is planet CFBDSIR2149-0403 hot?
According to a BBC report
Astronomers have spotted a "rogue planet" - wandering the cosmos without a star to orbit - 100 light-years away.
...
The proximity of the new rogue planet has ...
- 7,308
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
4
votes
2
answers
52
views
Is it easier to learn more about the seasonal changes in an exoplanet's atmosphere when the exoplanet orbits a binary star system?
From a recent ScienceDaily article, we have this...
Scientists detected the new planet in the Kepler-16 system, a pair of
orbiting stars that eclipse each other from our vantage point on
Earth. When ...
- 3,662
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
3
votes
1
answer
728
views
Exoplanet Mass-Radius Diagram
I'm currently studying the following diagram:
But I'm not entirely sure I understand what's going on. Is it just, that most exoplanets discovered, is pretty much made up of Hydrogen and Helium ? And ...
- 2,577
3
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Lift and drag coefficients on other planets
The question I'm trying to answer seemed simple: how hard would it be to fly on a planet with lower gravity but also thinner atmosphere compared to Earth. If the answer could hint me at how much ...
- 33
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
2
votes
1
answer
4k
views
Calculating the eccentricity of an exoplanet
I'm wondering how to calculate the eccentricity of an exoplanet by its radial velocity vs. phase graph. To clarify my question I will take an exoplanet called WASP-14b 2 as an example (http://...
- 27
1
vote
2
answers
352
views
On Planets orbiting binary stars
Several years ago a discovery was made of planet orbiting a star of a binary system (two stars orbiting each other). Since binary star systems are plentiful in our galaxy, I presume we will be ...
- 1,577
0
votes
2
answers
2k
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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