TESS Science Office at MIT hits milestone of 5,000 exoplanet candidates
Catalog of planet candidates nearly doubles in size during 2020-21.
TESS discovers a planet the size of Mars but with the makeup of Mercury
The boiling new world, which zips around its star at ultraclose range, is among the lightest exoplanets found to date.
One year on this giant, blistering hot planet is just 16 hours long
A newly discovered “ultrahot Jupiter” has the shortest orbit of any known gas giant.
Astronomers detect signs of an atmosphere stripped from a planet during giant impact
Such planetary smashups are likely common in young solar systems, but they haven’t been directly observed.
TESS Science Conference II draws nearly 700 virtual attendees
Not just an exoplanet-finder anymore, TESS yields diverse astrophysics results at second science conference.
Research updates from TESS: Hunting for worlds beyond our solar system
MIT scientists present exoplanet data at the 237th American Astronomical Society meeting.
TESS discovers four exoplanets orbiting a nearby sun-like star
MIT-led NASA mission finds a multi-planetary system that could be an “ideal laboratory” to study planetary formation and evolution.
Professor and astrophysicist Sara Seager appointed officer to the Order of Canada
Pioneer in exoplanet research helped transform the burgeoning field into one of the fastest-growing and most exciting in space science.
Astronomers discover an Earth-sized “pi planet” with a 3.14-day orbit
The rocky world, with its baking-hot surface, is likely not habitable.
Lava oceans may not explain the brightness of some hot super-Earths
By making their own lava and cooled glass, scientists find these materials likely aren’t responsible for the unexpected glow of some exoplanets.
Study: A plunge in incoming sunlight may have triggered “Snowball Earths”
Findings also suggest exoplanets lying within habitable zones may be susceptible to ice ages.
TESS mission discovers massive ice giant
Neptune-sized planet may be remnant core of a much larger planet.
Citizen scientists spot closest young brown dwarf disk yet
Discovery made through the Disk Detective project could help the search for new planets.
Study: Life might survive, and thrive, in a hydrogen world
When searching for extraterrestrial life, astronomers may want to look at planets with hydrogen-rich atmospheres.
Meet the MIT bilinguals: Dual history and planetary science major Charlotte Minsky
Studying history has made her a better planetary scientist, Minsky says. And studying science has made her a better historian.