Extrasolar Planets

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Exoplanets or Extrasolar Planets are planets that orbit distant stars. At least 100 Extrasolar Planets (exoplanets) have been found in other Star Systems, but they cannot be seen visually.

These planets vary from Jupiter-like planets that orbit much closer to their star than our Planet Mercury to giant planets that have orbits beyond our Planet Pluto in distance from their star.

Planet Hunters

Planet Hunters refers to astronomers looking for planets beyond our Solar System. Planet Hunting involves studying the movement of the stars and their light. The aim of many astronomers is to find Earth-sized planets that might harbour life.

In 1995, Astronomers, Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz from Switzerland discovered the first planet orbiting another star like the Sun. The star is called 51 Pegasi. The extra solar planet was detected by observing the star wobble.

How to find a Planet?

The reason astronomers cannot see the planets around stars is because there is too much light and glare as the planets are too close to their star.

In the future, space telescopes such as the Terrestrial Planet Finder may use masking techniques to mask out the light.

At present the most powerful telescopes cannot see planets around stars, however, astronomers have developed techniques to detect them. The techniques include:

1. Wobble - Light from a star can reveal hints that the gravity of an unseen planet is tugging it back and forth.

2. Shadow - A planet crossing the face of a star causes the starlight to dim. The dimming can reveal the planets size and even hint at its composition.

3. Glow - A newly formed planet will still be hot from its formation and will emit infra red light perhaps enough for a telescope to pick up.

Books:

1. New Worlds in the Cosmos : The Discovery of Exoplanets
by Michel Mayor (Author), Pierre-Yves Frei (Author), Boud Roukema (Translator)

From Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.ca, BN.com

2. Planet Quest: The Epic Discovery of Alien Solar Systems
by Ken Croswell

From Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.ca, BN.com

- 3. Distant Wanderers: The Search for Planets Beyond the Solar System by Bruce Dorminey
From Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.ca, BN.com

- 4. Rare Earth: Why Complex Life is Uncommon in the Universe
by Peter Douglas Ward, Donald Brownlee
From Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.ca, BN.com

Painting of a Saturn-sized planet around the white star Fomalhaut.
Copyright ?2000-2003 David A Hardy. All rights reserved.
This photo may not be copied for any purpose without David A Hardy's Permission.

Extrasolar Planets Links

The Extrasolar Planets Encyclopaedia:
California & Carnegie Planet Search:
Extrasolar Planets Catalog:
SFSU Extrasolar Planets Search planets around stars:
Extrasolar Planets: The Search for the Extrasolar Planets: A Brief History of the Search, the Findings and the Future Implications
Planet Quest: JPL site in search of another Earth
The Kepler Mission: A NASA mission dedicated to discovery of planets around others stars through observation of planets transits.
Darwin - Space Infrared Interferometer Project: Designed for general astrophysics and search for signs of life on Earth-like planets orbiting nearby stars. It is a candidate cornerstone 9 for a European Space Agency mission in 2015.
James Webb Space Telescope: The James Webb Space Telescope, or JWST, is a large, infrared-optimized space telescope designed to study the formation of the first stars and galaxies, the evolution of galaxies and the production of elements by stars, and the process of star and planet formation.
Transits of Extrasolar Planets: The TEP network is a group of collaborators searching for Transits of Extrasolar Planets.
Full-sky Astrometric Mapping Explorer: FAME is an astrometric satellite designed to determine with unprecedented accuracy the positions, distances, and motions of 40 million stars within our galactic neighborhood. It is a collaborative effort between the U.S. Naval Observatory (USNO) and several other institutions.