21: Exoplanets

Astronomy 2e Openstax · LibreTexts

0%

Contents

    Text

    Size
    100%
    Theme
    Typeface
    Line length
    Spacing

    From LibreTexts, under CC BY, as the source states it; its equations are written in TeX, which the PDF shows typeset. This page at LibreTexts.

    • 21.1: Planets beyond the Solar System- Search and Discovery
      Several observational techniques have successfully detected planets orbiting other stars. These techniques fall into two general categories—direct and indirect detection. The Doppler and transit techniques are our most powerful indirect tools for finding exoplanets. Some planets are also being found by direct imaging.
    • 21.2: Exoplanets Everywhere - What we are Learning
      Although the Kepler mission is finding thousands of new exoplanets, these are limited to orbital periods of less than 400 days and sizes larger than Mars. Still, we can use the Kepler discoveries to extrapolate the distribution of planets in our Galaxy. The data so far imply that planets like Earth are the most common type of planet, and that there may be 100 billion Earth-size planets around Sun-like stars in the Galaxy. About 2600 planetary systems have been discovered around other stars.

    This page titled 21: Exoplanets was last modified on Fri, 16 May 2025 18:10:37 GMT and is shared under a CC BY license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Rachel Mastrapa.