The NASA catalog features 126 newly discovered planets beyond our solar system, providing detailed measurements for comparison with our own system. These planets were analyzed by an international team of scientists using NASA’s TESS and the W.M. Keck Observatory in Hawai’i. The research team spent three years developing the catalog, analyzing over 13,000 radial velocity measurements to determine the masses of 120 confirmed planets and six candidate planets in the northern sky. The planets’ orbits cause their host stars to “wobble”, affecting the visible light seen from Earth, allowing astronomers to infer their presence and measure their masses.
One touchstone planet in the survey is TOI-1386 b, a sub-Saturn planet with a mass and radius between Neptune and Saturn. Another notable discovery is a planet half the size of Neptune with a 19-day orbit around a Sun-like star. These planets provide valuable insights into planetary diversity beyond our solar system and challenge our understanding of the universe. By studying these planets, scientists hope to make apt comparisons with our own world and gain a better understanding of the uniqueness and diversity of the Universe.
The catalog also includes planets with extreme, ultra-short orbits around stars unlike our Sun. TOI-1798 c, for example, completes an orbit around its orange dwarf star in less than 12 hours, making one year on the planet less than half a day on Earth. These planets receive intense radiation from their host stars, likely leading to the loss of any original atmosphere. These extreme environments raise questions about the potential habitability of these planets and whether they could support life as we know it.
The discovery of these exotic planets represents a major contribution to NASA’s TESS mission and provides valuable data for answering questions about the diversity of planetary systems beyond our solar system. The researchers involved in the survey hope to deepen astronomers’ understanding of the ways planets form and evolve in different environments. By studying these planets and their host stars, scientists can gain insights into the prevalence of different planet types in our galaxy and the potential similarities or differences between our solar system and others.
Overall, the catalog of 126 newly discovered planets offers a wealth of data for future research into the formation and evolution of planetary systems beyond our own. By analyzing the masses and radii of these planets, astronomers can gain insights into their composition, formation, and potential habitability. The catalog represents a major step toward understanding the diversity and uniqueness of planetary systems in our galaxy and provides valuable information for future studies on the existence of life beyond Earth.