“Other Worlds” Searching for Extrasolar Planets Cover, Full Page Opener and Illustrations for Science86 Article on Detecting Planets Circling Other Stars |
Pelagia A Water Planet Seen from one of its Ice Moons |
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Accretion Park In Orbit Over a Partially Submerged Impact Crater |
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First Glow of a A New Horizon On the Surface at the Shore of an Alien Ocean |
An Element of |
The Search for Extrasolar Planets Heats Up Astronomers have found stars near to us that appear to "wobble" when observed for extended periods of time. It has long been thought that these motions of the stars against the more distand background stars is caused by the gravitational effects of planets in orbit around them. The search for these stars and the eventual detection of orbiting bodies is gaining new ground with three recent discoveries of stars relatively close to our Sun that exhibit this periodic wobble. These stars are close enough to us that supporting evidence may be gathered to rule out other forces that may cause the motion.
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