In an in-depth piece for The New York Times Magazine, Chris Jones spotlights Prof. Sara Seager, exploring her quest for an Earthlike exoplanet. Jones writes there has been an explosion of knowledge about exoplanets in part because of “Seager’s pioneering theoretical work in using light to study the composition of alien atmospheres.”
In an article for Quartz, Prof. Sara Seager speculates about what it might be like to visit the recently discovered Earth-like planet dubbed Proxima Centauri. Seager writes that “the most fascinating aspect to me is that on the planet, the alien sun would be in the same place in the sky at all times.”
New findings from EAPS postoc Julien de Wit shows that two previously discovered exoplanets 40 light years from Earth have rocky surfaces, which “represent a unique opportunity to go looking for conditions that would favor life,” writes Rachel Feltman for the The Washington Post.
TIME reporter Jeffrey Kluger writes that researchers have discovered three potentially habitable planets. Kluger explains that the researchers observed the planets orbiting an ultracool dwarf star “at a distance at which water—the must-have ingredient for life as we know it—could exist in liquid form.”
Dr. Julien de Wit speaks with Nell Greenfieldboyce of NPR about the three potentially habitable planets that he and his colleagues recently discovered. "These planets are Earth-sized, they are temperate — we can't rule out the fact that they are habitable — and they are well-suited for atmospheric studies," de Wit explains.
Los Angeles Times reporter Deborah Netburn writes that researchers have discovered three potentially habitable planets orbiting an ultracool dwarf star 40 light years away. "The team took a big risk even looking for planets around these stars," says MIT postdoc Julien de Wit, co-author of the paper. "But it has really paid off."
A team of astronomers, including researchers from MIT, have discovered three potentially habitable planets, reports Ashley Strickland for CNN. Strickland writes that the “results are just the beginning of a study that will continue for years. The researchers are already working on observations to see if the planets have water or methane molecules.”
Astronomers at MIT, in collaboration with an international team of scientists, have detected three planets, located 40 light years away, that could potentially be habitable. The “planets likely have permanent day and night sides. The next step is to look for signs of biological conditions on the planets.”
Huffington Post reporter Michael McLaughlin writes that a new study co-authored by MIT postdoc Julien de Wit details the discovery of three Earth-sized planets. The “planets orbit a star in the Aquarius constellations named Trappist-1,” writes McLaughlin. “But the planets are close enough to the star to have ‘temperate’ conditions on their surface.”
Boston Globe reporter Astead Herndon writes that an international team of astronomers, including researchers from MIT, have discovered three potentially habitable planets. “This is a paradigm shift,” says Julien de Wit, a postdoc at MIT. “These planets are the best shots for us to search for other habitats, and maybe even life.”
Researchers have uncovered evidence about how “hot Jupiter” exoplanets form by studying a planet with an eccentric orbit, reports Eva Botkin-Kowacki for The Christian Science Monitor. "This planet is thought to be caught in the act of migrating inward," says MIT postdoc Julien de Wit. "By studying it, we are able to test theories of hot Jupiter formation."
Washington Post reporter Rachel Feltman writes that a new study co-authored by MIT postdoc Julien de Wit examines the eccentric orbit of an exoplanet with extreme weather variations. The researchers found that, “every 111 days, the planet swings close to its sun-like host star before being flung back out.”
An Earth-like planet 39 light-years away from Earth could provide researchers with an opportunity to study another planet’s atmosphere, reports Chukwuma Muanya for The Guardian. “Because it is so close, the air and clouds above GJ 1132b could be studied in detail using space and ground-based telescopes,” Muanya explains.
Jonathan Amos reports for BBC News on the discovery of a nearby exoplanet that is orbiting a red dwarf star. Amos explains that researchers are interested in studying Earth-sized exoplanets as “it may be their best bet of establishing whether or not life exists beyond our Solar System.”
Huffington Post reporter Nitya Rajan writes that the discovery of an Earth-sized exoplanet by MIT researchers could be an important step in the search for extraterrestrial life. The planet is “close enough for experts to better understand the different types of atmospheres that could support life.”