{"id":420531,"date":"2026-05-04T23:32:25","date_gmt":"2026-05-04T13:32:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/science.nasa.gov\/missions\/tess\/for-nasas-tess-stellar-eclipses-shed-light-on-possible-new-worlds\/"},"modified":"2026-05-04T23:32:25","modified_gmt":"2026-05-04T13:32:25","slug":"for-nasas-tess-stellar-eclipses-shed-light-on-possible-new-worlds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=420531","title":{"rendered":"For NASA\u2019s TESS, Stellar Eclipses Shed Light on Possible New Worlds"},"content":{"rendered":"
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4 min read<\/p>\n

For NASA\u2019s TESS, Stellar Eclipses Shed Light on Possible New Worlds<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A study of NASA\u2019s TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite) data on stellar pairs undergoing mutual eclipses has uncovered more than two dozen candidate exoplanets, or worlds beyond our solar system. This method allows the mission to locate planets it couldn\u2019t otherwise detect.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\"Planet<\/a><\/figure>
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A gas giant planet looms in the foreground at right, illuminated by a pair of stars, in this artist\u2019s concept of a world in a binary system. NASA\u2019s TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite) has found planets in two binary star systems by looking for stellar dimming as the planets cross in front of one of the stars. Astronomers have now demonstrated a new method of finding planets in these systems by focusing on the timing of the stars\u2019 mutual eclipses.<\/div>\n
NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center\/Chris Smith (USRA)<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

To date, TESS<\/a> has discovered 885 confirmed exoplanets<\/a> and identified more than 7,900 candidates, nearly all found because the planets pass in front of their stars from our perspective. These events, called transits, produce a small, regular dip in the brightness of the planet\u2019s host star. TESS also observes tens of thousands of eclipsing binary stars \u2014 two orbiting stars that alternately eclipse each other from our vantage point. Astronomers can detect the gravitational tug of exoplanets in these systems by carefully measuring the exact timing of many eclipses. Prior to the new study, discoveries by NASA\u2019s retired Kepler mission<\/a> and other facilities had recorded 16 transiting worlds around binary stars<\/a>, while TESS had found an additional two.<\/p>\n

\u201cIdentifying transits in binary systems clearly is challenging, but we\u2019d like to know more about the range of planets that can form around two gravitationally bound stars,\u201d said study lead Margo Thornton, a doctoral candidate at UNSW (University of New South Wales<\/a>) in Sydney. \u201cSo we developed a survey to search for planets using stellar eclipses that is not limited to the orientation of the planet\u2019s orbit.\u201d<\/p>\n

A paper<\/a> describing the findings published May 4 in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.<\/p>\n

For planets located in binary systems, the orientation of the planet\u2019s orbit can tell us about how that system formed. Some models of planet formation in binary systems suggest planets mainly form near the plane formed by the two orbiting stars, increasing the likelihood of binaries hosting transiting worlds. But other models indicate a much more disorderly formation process, with the stellar pair stirring its young planets into wider and more tilted paths much less likely to undergo transits.<\/p>\n

The timing of stellar eclipses can gradually change through tidal and rotational interactions between the stars, the effects of general relativity, and the presence of other unseen masses, such as planets, in the system. All of these forces cause the entire orbital plane of the binary to rotate, or precess, and this in turn alters the eclipse timing.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe key to calculating all of these different influences is the long, rich set of observations available from TESS,\u201d said co-author Benjamin Montet, a Scientia associate professor at UNSW Sydney. \u201cAfter analyzing 1,590 binaries with at least two years of TESS data, we found 27 with candidate planets that now await confirmation.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Infographic<\/a><\/figure>
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Explore how observations of stellar eclipses can expand the capabilities of NASA\u2019s TESS, leading to the discovery of new candidate planets it couldn\u2019t otherwise detect.<\/div>\n
NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center\/Francis Reddy<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Since science operations began in 2018, TESS has tiled the sky by observing large swaths, called sectors, for nearly a month. Currently, the mission\u2019s cameras capture a single image of the entire sector, measuring 24 by 96 degrees, about every 3 minutes, with even faster observations of selected targets.<\/p>\n

The masses of the new candidates remain uncertain, but the team estimates the smallest world may hold as little 12 Earth masses, with the largest topping out around 3,200 Earths, or about 10 times Jupiter\u2019s mass. Confirming these planets will require future ground-based observations that precisely measure the velocities of the host stars, which will reveal the slight gravitational tugs of any possible planets.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe TESS mission was built to find transiting planets, and it\u2019s great to see how the same measurements are driving discoveries far beyond its original mission,\u201d said Allison Youngblood, the TESS project scientist at NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center<\/a> in Greenbelt, Maryland. \u201cThe mission\u2019s continuing data collection is a treasure trove that enables new findings across a wide range of astronomical topics, from asteroids in the solar system to active galaxies powered by black holes in the distant universe.\u201d<\/p>\n

You could discover the next exoplanet! Join the <\/em>Planet Hunters TESS<\/em><\/a> citizen science project, and you\u2019ll learn how to read light curves \u2014 plots of light data from distant stars \u2014 to find telltale signals from orbiting exoplanets<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

By Francis Reddy<\/a>
NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center<\/a>, Greenbelt, Md.<\/p>\n

Media Contact:
Claire Andreoli
301-286-1940
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov<\/a>
NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Additional releases<\/h2>\n

UNSW Sydney: New Star Wars-like planet candidates with two suns discovered<\/a><\/p>\n

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