Category Archives: Exoplanets

detecting exoplanets

Posted on March 15, 2020 by mcknia1

Extrasolar planets, aka exoplanets are planets that orbit stars other than our own. Astronomers employ several methods to detect these planets. One such method that fascinates me is the transit method, which is used by looking for a drop in brightness in a small world caused when they pass in front of their parent star.Continue reading “detecting exoplanets” Continue reading →

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Resilient Life on Earth Increases Possibility of Extraterrestrial Life

Posted on April 27, 2019 by dayvon

Believe it or not, there are organisms on Earth that can survive unimaginable conditions! These beings are called extremophiles, and they’re nothing short of amazing. One example is the tardigrade, which can live in the most extreme heat, cold, dehydration and radiation. The simple fact that these organisms exist give us reason to believe that … Continue reading Resilient Life on Earth Increases Possibility of Extraterrestrial Life → Continue reading →

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The Drake Equation

Posted on April 27, 2019 by anna_h

We hear about aliens all the time, whether in books or movies or tv shows, and this leads us to ponder our own existence. Are we alone, or is there other life out there? This is a question that has plagued mankind since begun exploring interstellar space, and started looking for life in our own … Continue reading The Drake Equation Continue reading →

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The Rare Earth Hypothesis

Posted on April 25, 2019 by epiphany9

I was inspired by Victoria’s post to think more about the Fermi Paradox, and specifically, explanations of the uniqueness of intelligent life on Earth. The Rare Earth Hypothesis is one such explanation; it postulates that conditions favorable to life (and particularly intelligent life) are incredibly rare in the universe. It is in opposition to hypotheses […] Continue reading →

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Extrasolar planets — Earth-like planets

Posted on April 7, 2019 by Yihao Yan

Extrasolar planets is one of the most interesting astronomical research topics. It can help us answer questions such as whether there are aliens, or is it possible for us to find another “Earth” to live on. An extrasolar planet is defined as a planet that is outside of solar system. The history of extrasolar planet … Continue reading Extrasolar planets — Earth-like planets → Continue reading →

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Exoplanet Properties by Discovery Method

Posted on April 7, 2019 by Andrew Talley

In class, we’ve discussed how the method we use to discover planets may bias the types of planets we find. For example, larger, more massive planets are easier to find with almost any method of discovering planets. Likely because of this, we have found far more Jupiter-sized exoplanets than Earth-sized planets. I wanted to investigate … Continue reading Exoplanet Properties by Discovery Method → Continue reading →

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Exoplanets 101: Does the earth have a twin?

Posted on April 7, 2019 by alfredprah

Potential Habitable Planets An extrasolar planet is a planet that orbits a star that’s not our sun. Even though these planets can be recognized, and their sizes measured, they are light years away so it would take astronomers thousands of years to reach these extrasolar planets. To detect these planets, scientists use either one of … Continue reading Exoplanets 101: Does the earth have a twin? → Continue reading →

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Extrasolar Planets: A Search to Span Solar Systems

Posted on April 7, 2019 by Sam Bianco

Recently, I have started work as an undergraduate research assistant in the Physics and Astronomy department at my university. The project I was assigned to is of a stellar nature; we are attempting to find evidence of extrasolar planets, or planets around other stars. Though we haven’t found any planets yet, I keep thinking about … Continue reading Extrasolar Planets: A Search to Span Solar Systems → Continue reading →

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Blog 5: TESS

Posted on April 6, 2019 by Katie

NASA’s new exoplanet telescope, the TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite), was launched April 18, 2018 and is expected to find 20,000 exoplanets during its 2 year primary mission. This is huge increase compared to the 3,933 that are currently confirmed. Among these planets will hopefully be multiple rocky planets in the habitable zone, or zone … Continue reading Blog 5: TESS → Continue reading →

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Chemical Composition of Exoplanet Atmospheres

Posted on March 12, 2019 by richardficek

One goal of studying exoplanet atmospheres is to understand its composition and temperature. Specifically, we want to be able to recognize planets that could potentially have atmospheres most similar to Earth’s (with water vapor, oxygen, ozone, and carbon dioxide) – with the main objective being to find planets with strong water features that could support … Continue reading Chemical Composition of Exoplanet Atmospheres → Continue reading →

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