TRAPPIST-1e is a rocky exoplanet in the habitable zone of a star 40 light-years from Earth and may have water and clouds, as depicted in this artist’s impression.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Wikimedia Commons
Life on Earth has dramatically changed the chemistry of the planet. Astronomers will measure light that bounces off distant planets to look for similar clues that they host life.
The mirror on the James Webb Space Telescope is fully aligned and producing incredibly sharp images, like this test image of a star.
NASA/STScI via Flickr
It has taken eight months to test and calibrate all of the instruments and modes of the James Webb Space Telescope. A scientist on the team explains what it took to get Webb up and running.
Artist’s impression of a giant planet forming.
NASA, ESA, STScI, Joseph Olmsted (STScI)
The astronomy and astrophysics decadal survey for the 2020s lays out plans to search for life on distant planets, understand the formation of galaxies and solve deep mysteries of physics.
An artist’s impression of the dark side of ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-121b.
Credit: Patricia Klein / MPIA
Clouds, hellish temperatures, endless nights? Characterizing the atmosphere of exoplanets, planets that orbit stars other than the sun, is a formidable task.
James Webb Space Telescope mirrors undergoing cryogenic testing.
Ball Aerospace/Shutterstock
Most of what we know about planets outside our Solar System relates to gas-giant planets. A new study has identified and characterised a smaller exoplanet.
Artist’s impression of exoplanet KELT-11 b.
Impression by Léa Changeat.
On the ultra-hot exoplanet WASP-76b, metal is vaporized in the heat. Studying the atmosphere of extreme planets will reveal more wild and weird weather.
Scientists have a good estimate on the staggering number of stars in the universe.
The James Webb Space Telescope is the biggest orbital telescope ever built and is scheduled to be launched into space on Dec. 18, 2021.
NASA/Desiree Stover
The largest orbital telescope ever made will allow astronomers to study the atmospheres of alien planets, learn about how stars form in the Milky Way and peer into the farthest reaches of the universe.