http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (Phys.org) —Our galaxy is teeming with a wild variety of planets. In addition to our solar system's eight near-and-dear planets, there are more than 800 so-called exoplanets known to circle stars beyond our sun. One of the first "species" of exoplanets to be discovered is the hot Jupiters, also known as roasters. These are gas giants like Jupiters, but they orbit closely to their stars, blistering under the heat. http://phys.org/news287077834.html Space & Earth Mon, 06 May 2013 16:50:58 EST news287077834 Among the many planets detected orbiting other stars (exoplanets) over the last twenty years, a little less than three hundred periodically pass in front of their star. This is what astronomers call a planetary transit. Exoplanets that "transit" their stars are key objects for the study of other planetary systems, because they are the only planets beyond our solar system that can be studied in detail, both in terms of their physical parameters (mass, radius, orbital parameters) and their atmospheric properties (thermal structure, dynamics, composition). http://phys.org/news286095647.html Space & Earth Thu, 25 Apr 2013 08:01:07 EST news286095647 (Phys.org) —NASA's Kepler mission has discovered two new planetary systems that include three super-Earth-size planets in the "habitable zone," the range of distance from a star where the surface temperature of an orbiting planet might be suitable for liquid water. http://phys.org/news285511672.html Space & Earth Thu, 18 Apr 2013 14:00:08 EST news285511672 NASA's Astrophysics Explorer Program has selected two missions for launch in 2017: a planet-hunting satellite and an International Space Station instrument to observe X-rays from stars. http://phys.org/news284445302.html Space & Earth Sat, 06 Apr 2013 05:35:23 EST news284445302 (Phys.org)—In their search for habitable worlds, astronomers have started to consider exomoons, or those likely orbiting planets outside the solar system. In a new study, a pair of researchers has found that exomoons are just as likely to support life as exoplanets. http://phys.org/news277040019.html Space & Earth Thu, 10 Jan 2013 11:33:56 EST news277040019 To build a planet you need lots of rubble and that means lots of heavy elements – stuff more massive than atoms of hydrogen and helium. The elemental composition of the collapsing nebula that gave birth to the Sun and the planets of the Solar System included things like iron, silicon and magnesium that form the bulk of rocky planets, and carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, potassium and other such elements that are essential for life. http://phys.org/news265620747.html Space & Earth Fri, 31 Aug 2012 08:34:16 EST news265620747 President Vladimir Putin vowed on Tuesday to conquer ever broader expanses of the Arctic for Russia's oil and natural gas giants while inviting foreign majors to take part in the development boom. http://phys.org/news261139567.html Space & Earth Tue, 10 Jul 2012 11:55:14 EST news261139567 (Phys.org) -- Building a terrestrial planet requires raw materials that weren't available in the early history of the universe. The Big Bang filled space with hydrogen and helium. Chemical elements like silicon and oxygen - key components of rocks - had to be cooked up over time by stars. But how long did that take? How many of such heavy elements do you need to form planets? http://phys.org/news258810021.html Space & Earth Wed, 13 Jun 2012 13:00:31 EST news258810021 It had previously been thought that planets were more likely to form around a star if the star had a high content of heavier elements. But new research from the University of Copenhagen, among others, shows that small planets can form around very different types of stars – also stars that are relatively poor in heavy elements. This significantly increases the likelihood that Earth-like planets are widespread in the universe. The results have been published in the prestigious scientific journal, Nature. http://phys.org/news258806534.html Space & Earth Wed, 13 Jun 2012 13:00:09 EST news258806534 Scientists now have evidence that Jupiter's core has been dissolving, and the implications stretch far outside of our solar system. http://phys.org/news251622643.html Space & Earth Thu, 22 Mar 2012 09:10:01 EST news251622643 There are more exoplanets further away from their parent stars than originally thought, according to new astrophysics research. http://phys.org/news245594984.html Space & Earth Thu, 12 Jan 2012 13:00:01 EST news245594984 Using data from NASA’s Kepler Mission, astronomers announced the discovery of two new transiting “circumbinary” planet systems -- planets that orbit two stars. This work establishes that such “two sun” planets are not rare exceptions, but are in fact common with many millions existing in our Galaxy. The work is published today in the journal Nature and presented at the American Astronomical Society meeting in Austin, TX. http://phys.org/news245503353.html Space & Earth Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:00:01 EST news245503353 Scientists are now starting to identify potential habitable exoplanets after nearly twenty years of the detection of the first planets around other stars. Over 700 exoplanets have been detected and confirmed with thousands more still waiting further confirmation by missions such as NASA Kepler. Most of these are gas giants, similar to Jupiter and Neptune, but orbiting very dangerously close to their stars. Only a few have the right size and orbit to be considered suitable for any life. http://phys.org/news242297362.html Space & Earth Mon, 05 Dec 2011 08:49:34 EST news242297362 Discoveries of new planets just keep coming and coming. Take, for instance, the 18 recently found by a team of astronomers led by scientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). http://phys.org/news242054748.html Space & Earth Fri, 02 Dec 2011 13:26:16 EST news242054748 Scientists want to send an orbiter and probe to the ice giant planet Uranus, but do the resources exist to support such an ambitious project? http://phys.org/news237628517.html Space & Earth Wed, 12 Oct 2011 08:56:25 EST news237628517 (PhysOrg.com) -- A new study published on arXiv.org shows that, based on computer simulations, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune may not have been the only gas giants in our solar system. According to David Nesvorny from Colorado’s Southwest Research Institute, our current solar system could never have happened without the existence of a fifth planet. http://phys.org/news235917533.html Space & Earth Thu, 22 Sep 2011 14:30:02 EST news235917533 When NASA announced the discovery of over 1,200 new potential planets spotted by the Kepler Space Telescope, almost a quarter of them were thought to be Super-Earths. Now, new research suggests that these massive rocky planets may be the result of the failed creation of Jupiter-sized gas giants. http://phys.org/news235383422.html Space & Earth Fri, 16 Sep 2011 09:18:26 EST news235383422 It is our general understanding of solar system composition that planets fall into two categories: gas giants like Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Uranus… and rocky bodies that support some type of atmosphere like Earth, Mars and Venus. However, as we reach further into space we’re beginning to realize the Solar System is pretty unique because it doesn’t have a planetary structure which meets in the middle. But just because we don’t have one doesn’t mean they don’t exist. As a matter of fact, astronomers have found more than 30 of them and they call this new class of planet a “Super-Earth.” http://phys.org/news232014873.html Space & Earth Mon, 08 Aug 2011 09:50:12 EST news232014873 (PhysOrg.com) -- NASA's Kepler spacecraft is proving itself to be a prolific planet hunter. Within just the first four months of data, astronomers have found evidence for more than 1,200 planetary candidates. Of those, 408 reside in systems containing two or more planets, and most of those look very different than our solar system. http://phys.org/news225451430.html Space & Earth Tue, 24 May 2011 10:24:27 EST news225451430 Recent modeling of solar mass stars with planetary systems, found that a system with four rocky planets and four gas giants in stable orbits – and only a sparsely populated outer belt of planetesimals – has only a 15 to 25% likelihood of developing. While you might be skeptical about the validity of a model that puts our best known planetary system in the unlikely basket, there may be some truth in this finding. http://phys.org/news221741881.html Space & Earth Mon, 11 Apr 2011 11:58:11 EST news221741881 Volcanoes display the awesome power of Nature like few other events. Earlier this year, ash from an Icelandic volcano disrupted air travel throughout much of northern Europe. Yet this recent eruption pales next to the fury of Jupiter's moon Io, the most volcanic body in our solar system. http://phys.org/news203080119.html Space & Earth Tue, 07 Sep 2010 12:08:58 EST news203080119 (PhysOrg.com) -- Twenty years ago on February 14, NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft had sailed beyond the outermost planet in our solar system and turned its camera inward to snap a series of final images that would be its parting valentine to the string of planets it called home. http://phys.org/news185446068.html Space & Earth Mon, 15 Feb 2010 08:48:19 EST news185446068 When NASA's Kepler telescope rocketed into the night sky last week, two Berkeley astronomers watching its fading contrail were hoping that the telescope will reveal Earth's — and humanity's — place in the universe. http://phys.org/news156101002.html Space & Earth Thu, 12 Mar 2009 18:24:13 EST news156101002 In recent years researchers have found hundreds of new planets beyond our solar system, raising questions about the origins and properties of these exotic worlds—not to mention the possible presence of life. Speaking at a symposium titled "The Origin and Evolution of Planets" held at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, two Carnegie Institution scientists will present their perspectives on the new era of planetary exploration. http://phys.org/news153833101.html Space & Earth Sat, 14 Feb 2009 11:26:27 EST news153833101 The planet Jupiter gained weight in a hurry during its infancy. It had to, since the material from which it formed probably disappeared in just a few million years, according to a new study of planet formation around young stars. http://phys.org/news150383252.html Space & Earth Mon, 05 Jan 2009 13:07:32 EST news150383252