"Super-Earth" exoplanets discovered
Posted: Tue, Jun 17, 2008, 7:31 AM ET (1131 GMT)
Astronomers have discovered three low-mass extrasolar planets dubbed "super-Earths" because they are only slightly larger than the Earth. The three exoplanets, whose discovery was announced Monday, have estimated masses of between four and ten times that of the Earth, making them smaller than the smallest gas giants in our own solar system, Uranus and Neptune, which are each about 15 times the mass of the Earth. All three orbit the same star, HD 40307, a Sun-like star 42 light-years away. The planets were discovered with the same radial velocity technique used to find most exoplanets to date, where periodic Doppler shifts in the spectra of stars indicate the presence of orbiting planets, but these are among the smallest planets found to date with that method.
Astronomers have discovered three low-mass extrasolar planets dubbed "super-Earths" because they are only slightly larger than the Earth. The three exoplanets, whose discovery was announced Monday, have estimated masses of between four and ten times that of the Earth, making them smaller than the smallest gas giants in our own solar system, Uranus and Neptune, which are each about 15 times the mass of the Earth. All three orbit the same star, HD 40307, a Sun-like star 42 light-years away. The planets were discovered with the same radial velocity technique used to find most exoplanets to date, where periodic Doppler shifts in the spectra of stars indicate the presence of orbiting planets, but these are among the smallest planets found to date with that method.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Friday, April 3
SpaceX successfully launches 29 Starlink satellites
Spectrum News — 6:39 am ET (1039 GMT) Space Force using ‘integrated test teams’ to speed up capability delivery
Defensescoop — 6:39 am ET (1039 GMT) Space Launcher Shortages Are Poised To Persist
Aviation Week — 6:38 am ET (1038 GMT) SpaceX and OpenAI IPOs are unlikely to bring skyrocketing returns that Amazon and Apple did, as companies go public later in life and early investors cash out
The Conversation — 6:36 am ET (1036 GMT) SpaceX’s IPO could be the largest-ever public offering—what to know before investing, from experts
CNBC — 6:36 am ET (1036 GMT) |
