Exoplanet systems as a research area investigate the formation, architecture, dynamics, and physical properties of planetary systems orbiting stars other than the Sun, integrating observational, theoretical, and computational approaches. The field encompasses detection techniques (e.g., transits, radial velocities, direct imaging, microlensing), characterization of planetary masses, radii, atmospheres, and orbits, and statistical studies of population demographics as functions of stellar type, metallicity, and environment. It also addresses disk–planet interactions, migration processes, multi-planet dynamics, and stability, with implications for planet formation theories, comparative planetology, and the occurrence and potential habitability of terrestrial and giant planets in diverse stellar contexts.
Life is complicated, and not just in a philosophical sense. But one simple thing we know about life is that it requires energy, and to get that energy it needs certain fundamental elements. A new paper published in The Open ...
Astrobiology
Sep 2, 2025
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Using NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), astronomers have discovered two rocky exoplanets orbiting a nearby K-type star, known as TOI-2322. The newfound alien worlds are comparable in size to Earth and have ...
Looking for the perfect vacation? Do you crave late-night fun? PSO J318.5−22, the planet with no star where nightlife never ends, is perfect for you! Prefer some peace and a chance to catch some rays? Kepler-16b, the land ...
Planetary Sciences
Sep 2, 2025
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171
What can the galactic habitable zone (GHZ), galactic regions where complex life is hypothesized to be able to evolve, teach scientists about finding the correct stars that could have habitable planets?
Astrobiology
Sep 1, 2025
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81
The Earth supports the only known life in the universe, all of it depending heavily on the presence of liquid water to facilitate chemical reactions. While single-celled life has existed almost as long as Earth itself, it ...
Astrobiology
Sep 1, 2025
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244
Astronomers sometimes find conflicting data when trying to answer a question. This is a normal part of the scientific process, and it simply means that more data is needed to prove or disprove the theory they are trying to ...
Planetary Sciences
Aug 27, 2025
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51
Sometimes in science a negative result is just as important as a positive one. And sometimes data artifacts get the better of even the best space observatories. Both of those ideas seem to hold true for the James Webb Space ...
Astronomy
Aug 27, 2025
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An international team of astronomers, co-led by researchers at the University of Galway, has made the unexpected discovery of a new planet.
Astronomy
Aug 26, 2025
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553
For astrobiologists, the search for life beyond our solar system could be likened to where one would look in a vast desert—essentially, where there's water. And it turns out that one of the most common types of exoplanet ...
Astrobiology
Aug 25, 2025
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81
As missions like Kepler and TESS discovered more rocky exoplanets in recent years, scientists looked forward to the launch of the JWST. The powerful space telescope has the ability to gather infrared spectra of exoplanet ...
Astronomy
Aug 22, 2025
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