The final frontier
Now that an Earthlike planet has been discovered, the key to confirming that it can host life will be to study its atmosphere in detail
Learning from hot Jupiters
By studying how massive planets may have formed, MIT astrophysicist sets the stage for studying smaller, more Earthlike planets.
Building a list of Earth candidates
MIT researchers increase their odds of detecting an Earthlike planet by working on a combination of satellite missions.
Astronomers detect first carbon-rich exoplanet
Discovery opens door to new class of exoplanets, including rocky planets rich in diamond and graphite.
Nergis Mavalvala wins MacArthur ‘genius’ grant
Physics professor and two alumni are awarded $500,000 in no-strings-attached funding.
Robert J. Butler, former design research engineer at MIT, dies at 89
An MIT engineer for 25 years, he helped design instruments for NASA’s Voyager spacecraft.
Explained: the Doppler effect
The same phenomenon behind changes in the pitch of a moving ambulance’s siren is helping astronomers locate and study distant planets.
3 Questions: Richard Binzel on astronomers’ powerful new tool
Pan-STARRS, a telescope designed to reveal the ‘unexpected surprises’ in our solar system, including possible threats to Earth, just became fully operational.
In a first, astronomers detect strong winds on an exoplanet
Researchers see tempestuous atmosphere on a planet located 150 light years from Earth.
Coordinated stargazing
MIT astronomer leads the first team to study a Kuiper Belt object during a stellar occultation.
In the search for Earthlike exoplanets, GJ 436b has much to tell us
First detailed analysis of the atmosphere of a Neptune-sized planet reveals surprisingly low methane levels, presents "new territory" for researching planets outside our solar system
Bartusiak honored by Astronomical Society of the Pacific
Wins Klumpke-Roberts Award in recognition of her contributions
Unraveling black hole spin
Retrograde spin of supermassive black holes may create jets that control galaxy evolution
Powering cube satellites
An electric propulsion technology for miniature satellites aims to give them more mobility — and may eventually allow them to take on deep-space missions.