In a fun cosmic coincidence, researchers used old Kepler spacecraft data to discover an Earth-sized exoplanet with an orbital period of 3.14 days, a number that matches the mathematical constant pi. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/pi-exoplanet-k2-315b-has-3-14-day-orbit…
Tag: eso
Searching for habitable exoplanets? Look for phosphorus
Scientists develop a new way to search for potentially habitable exoplanets by measuring the amount of phosphorus in their stars. Such planets should also have abundant phosphorus – necessary for life on Earth – increasing the chances for life. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/phosphorus-in-stars-and-biomarker-habitable-exoplanets…
Very Large Telescope spots galaxies trapped in the web of a supermassive black hole
With the help of ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), astronomers have found six galaxies lying around a supermassive black hole when the Universe was less than a billion years old. This is the first time such a close grouping has been seen so soon after the Big Bang and the finding helps us better understand how supermassive black holes, one of…
Climate change impacts astronomical observations
Climate changes associated with global warming can affect astronomical observations. That is the result of a study involving scientists from the University of Cologne. The international research team investigated a range of climate parameters at the Very Large Telescope (VLT) at the Paranal in the Atacama Desert in Chile, where the European Southern Observatory (ESO) operates its telescopes. Among other things,…
Has microbial life been found on Venus?
Is there microbial life in the atmosphere of Earth’s closest neighbor, Venus? An international team of astronomers has found tentative but highly compelling evidence. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/life-on-venus-phosphine-biosignatures…
Cool! Here’s how Venus would look as a water world
A new map created by a Reddit user – based on what we know about the highs and lows on Venus’ surface – shows what this neighboring, cloud-shrouded, blazing hot planet might look like with oceans. Wow! Source: https://earthsky.org/space/venus-map-with-oceans-on-surface-terraforming…
New observations show planet-forming disc torn apart by its three central stars
A team of astronomers have identified the first direct evidence that groups of stars can tear apart their planet-forming disc, leaving it warped and with tilted rings. This new research suggests exotic planets, not unlike Tatooine in Star Wars, may form in inclined rings in bent discs around multiple stars. The results were made possible thanks to observations with the European…
Are there more rogue planets than stars in our galaxy?
A new study suggests there are more rogue, free-floating planets – unconnected to any star – than stars in our Milky Way galaxy. NASA’s upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is expected to begin finding hundreds of them. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/rogue-planets-milky-way-roman-space-telescope…
Messier 11 is the Wild Duck Cluster
Messier 11 is a faint cluster of stars in a star-rich region of the night sky, in the direction of the heart of our Milky Way galaxy. Source: https://earthsky.org/clusters-nebulae-galaxies/wild-duck-cluster-deep-sky-gem-by-eagles-tail…
Astronomers spy a Milky Way look-alike 12 billion light-years away
This distant galaxy – SPT0418-47 – surprised astronomers by being organized enough to have a spinning disk and a galactic bulge, early in the history of our universe. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/alma-distant-milky-way-lookalike-galaxy-spt0418-47…