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Credit: Greg Bacon
(STScI/AVL)
Explanation:
By directly detecting the atmosphere of a planet outside our
Solar System, humanity has taken another small step toward
finding extraterrestrial
life.
The unexpected detection by
David Charbonneau
(Caltech)
and associates came from
Hubble Space Telescope
observations of
Sun-like star
HD 209458.
As an orbiting planet crossed between that star and the
Earth,
sodium in the planet's atmosphere
absorbed starlight at very specific colors.
The planet,
originally discovered two years ago,
has about 70 percent the mass of
Jupiter
but orbits very close in.
A long-term goal of
this type of research is the detection of planetary
biomarkers that would indicate
life, such as
oxygen,
water, or
methane.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: extrasolar planet
Publications with words: extrasolar planet
See also: