... Planets . ... Earth Satellites . ... Looking in the direction of the constellation Cygnus the Swan and launched by NASA in 2009 is the Kepler Space Observatory.Many previous missions searching for exoplanets mainly detected large giant planets, like large hot Jupiters (it is easier to detect larger planets).However KeplerтАЩs main objective is to search for much smaller planets located in a habitable zone which is not too close nor too far from their star; planets which may be just like our Earth. ...

Discover the cosmos! ... 2002 June 14 . 55 Cancri: Familiar Planet Discovered . ... The discovery of a Jupiter -like planet in a Jupiter-like orbit around nearby Sun -like star 55 Cancri , announced yesterday, gives a new indication that planetary systems similar to our Solar System likely exist elsewhere. The planet, discovered by G. Marcy ( UC Berkeley ) and collaborators, is one of two new planets found around 55 Cancri -- in 1997 a Jupiter-massed planet was found orbiting very close in. ...

... Tonight's Sky . ... The Magazine . ... Star Atlas . ... An artificial comet holds secrets to Earths life . ... Astronomy for Kids . ... Observing springtime deep-sky objects with a large telescope . ... The planet has extreme temperature swings and perhaps active lava flows. ... A digital supplement to Astronomy magazine. ... Join TravelQuest International with Astronomy and Discover magazines on one of three great tour options surrounding this celestial spectacle . ... Astronomy Magazine . ...

... 55 Cancri: Familiar Planet Discovered . ... The discovery of a Jupiter -like planet in a Jupiter-like orbit around nearby Sun-like star 55 Cancri , announced yesterday, gives a new indication that planetary systems similar to our Solar System likely exist elsewhere. The planet, discovered by G. Marcy ( UC Berkeley ) and collaborators, is one of two new planets found around 55 Cancri -- in 1997 a Jupiter-massed planet was found orbiting very close in. ... 30 1995 1996 1997 1998 . ...

... The 50 so-called exo-planets were discovered using a telescope that is found in South America. ... By looking at a star s wobble, astronomers can work out how many exo-planets are in orbit around it and how heavy they are. After studying all of the planets discovered with this telescope so far, astronomers have found that nearly half of stars that are similar to the Sun have at least one planet that is lighter than Saturn. ... But there are many, many more waiting to be found! ...

Astronomers Detect Coolest Radio Star . ... The new radio-star is much smaller and colder than our Sun.€а With a surface temperature not much higher than that of a giant planet, and a size comparable to JupiterтАЩs, it is scarcely visible in optical light.€а Yet the radio flares seen at Arecibo show it must have a strong magnetic field, implying that the same could be true of other similar stars. ...

... Armagh Observatory, College Hill, Armagh BT61 9DG, +44 (0)28 3752 2928 . This image shows the relative size of the three newly discovered . planets around Kepler 37. Image Courtesy of NASA). ... Dr Tom Barclay who studied at Armagh Observatory for three years as a post-graduate student funded by the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council, has led a team of astronomers who have detected the smallest extra-solar planet, or exoplanet, yet found around a star like our Sun. ...