Astronomers Find Elusive Planets in Decade-Old Hubble Data

October 06, 2011 9:00AM (EDT)Release ID: 2011-29
Astronomers Find Elusive Planets in Decade-Old Hubble Data

Summary

In a painstaking re-analysis of Hubble Space Telescope images from 1998, astronomers have found visual evidence for two extrasolar planets that went undetected back then.

Finding these hidden gems in the Hubble archive gives astronomers an invaluable time machine for comparing much earlier planet orbital motion data to more recent observations. It also demonstrates a novel approach for planet hunting in archival Hubble data.

Full Article

In a painstaking re-analysis of Hubble Space Telescope images from 1998, astronomers have found visual evidence for two extrasolar planets that went undetected back then. Finding these hidden gems in the Hubble archive gives astronomers an invaluable time machine for comparing much earlier planet orbital motion data to more recent observations. It also demonstrates a novel approach for planet hunting in archival Hubble data. Four giant planets are known to orbit the young, massive star HR 8799, which is 130 light-years away. In 2007 and 2008 the first three planets were discovered in near-infrared ...

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