Most known planets orbit a star. These planets, including Earth, benefit from the star’s warmth and light. And it is the light emitted from these stars which makes it possible for us to see them. But there are also “invisible” planets, hidden from our gaze, which float, abandoned, through the cosmos. These dark, lonely worlds have no star to orbit, no…
Tag: rogue planets
An Earth-sized rogue planet discovered in the Milky Way
Our galaxy may be teeming with rogue planets, gravitationally unbound to any star. An international team of scientists, led by Polish astronomers, has announced the discovery of the smallest Earth-sized free-floating planet found to date. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-10-earth-sized-rogue-planet-milky.html…
X-ray data reveal 1st-ever planet orbiting stars in another galaxy
While extragalactic “rogue” planets – not orbiting any star – have been reported before, the new exoplanet is the first to be detected orbiting stars in another galaxy. And not just any galaxy … but M51, the beautiful Whirlpool, 23 million light-years away. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/1st-exoplanet-in-another-galaxy-whirlpool-m51-uls-1b…
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…