Doing NASA Science brings many rewards. But can taking part in NASA citizen science help your career? To find out, we asked participants in NASA’s Exoplanet Watch project about their experiences. In this project, amateur astronomers work together with professionals to track planets around other stars.
Category: Exoplanets
Discovery Alert: Scientists Spot a Planetary Carousel
The Planets KOI-134 b and KOI-134 c The Discovery A new investigation into old Kepler data has revealed that a planetary system once thought to house zero planets actually has two planets which orbit their star in a unique style, like an old-fashioned merry-go-round. Key Facts The KOI-134 system contains two planets which orbit their […]
Discovery Alert: Flaring Star, Toasted Planet
The Discovery A giant planet some 400 light-years away, HIP 67522 b, orbits its parent star so tightly that it appears to cause frequent flares from the star’s surface, heating and inflating the planet’s atmosphere. Key Facts On planet Earth, “space weather” caused by solar flares might disrupt radio communications, or even damage satellites. But […]
3 Years of Science: 10 Cosmic Surprises from NASA’s Webb Telescope
Since July 2022, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has been unwaveringly focused on our universe. With its unprecedented power to detect and analyze otherwise invisible infrared light, Webb is making observations that were once impossible, changing our view of the cosmos from the most distant galaxies to our own solar system. Webb was built with […]
3 Years of Science: 10 Cosmic Surprises from NASA’s Webb Telescope
Since July 2022, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has been unwaveringly focused on our universe. With its unprecedented power to detect and analyze otherwise invisible infrared light, Webb is making observations that were once impossible, changing our view of the cosmos from the most distant galaxies to our own solar system. Webb was built with […]
Frigid Exoplanet in Strange Orbit Imaged by NASA’s Webb
A planetary system described as abnormal, chaotic, and strange by researchers has come into clearer view with NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. Using Webb’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera), researchers have successfully imaged one of two known planets surrounding the star 14 Herculis, located 60 light-years away from Earth in our own Milky Way galaxy. The exoplanet, […]
Discovery Alert: A Possible Perpendicular Planet
The Discovery A newly discovered planetary system, informally known as 2M1510, is among the strangest ever found. An apparent planet traces out an orbit that carries it far over the poles of two brown dwarfs. This pair of mysterious objects – too massive to be planets, not massive enough to be stars – also orbit […]
NASA’s Webb Lifts Veil on Common but Mysterious Type of Exoplanet
Though they don’t orbit around our Sun, sub-Neptunes are the most common type of exoplanet, or planet outside our solar system, that have been observed in our galaxy. These small, gassy planets are shrouded in mystery…and often, a lot of haze. Now, by observing exoplanet TOI-421 b, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope is helping scientists […]
NASA’s SPHEREx Space Telescope Begins Capturing Entire Sky
After weeks of preparation, the space observatory has begun its science mission, taking about 3,600 unique images per day to create a map of the cosmos like no other. Launched on March 11, NASA’s SPHEREx space observatory has spent the last six weeks undergoing checkouts, calibrations, and other activities to ensure it is working as […]
- Black Holes
- Dark Energy
- Dark Matter
- Earth-like Exoplanets
- Exoplanets
- Galaxies
- Gas Giant Exoplanets
- Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope
- Neptune-Like Exoplanets
- Neutron Stars
- Stars
- Stellar-mass Black Holes
- Super-Earth Exoplanets
- Supernovae
- Terrestrial Exoplanets
- The Milky Way
- The Solar System
- The Universe
NASA’s Roman Mission Shares Detailed Plans to Scour Skies
NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope team shared Thursday the designs for the three core surveys the mission will conduct after launch. These observation programs are designed to investigate some of the most profound mysteries in astrophysics while enabling expansive cosmic exploration that will revolutionize our understanding of the universe. “Roman’s setting out to do […]