The persistent efforts of scientists to discover new planets and extraterrestrial life continually yield intriguing discoveries. In a milestone in planet-hunting, a rare view of an alien world has now been made public.
As per a release by the University of Southern Queensland, a new paper published in Science today (April 14) could prove integral to the future discovery of distant planets.
Combining indirect detection with a ground-based direct imaging technique, an international team of astronomers, led by Dr Thayne Currie, were able to accurately identify a star with a planetary companion and then image the gas giant, now referred to as HIP 99770b.
Among the team was University of Southern Queensland astronomer Dr. Simon Murphy, whose knowledge of stellar pulsations helped to build a more detailed profile of HIP 99770b and its host star.
Formerly a researcher at the University of Sydney, Dr. Murphy was recruited to the project in 2021.
"Direct imaging is a very important detection method that we have at our disposal, but so far only around 20 exoplanets have been discovered using this method," Dr Murphy said.
According to the European Space Agency, data from ESA's star-mapping Gaia spacecraft has allowed astronomers to image a gigantic exoplanet using Japan's Subaru Telescope. This world is the first confirmed exoplanet found by Gaia's ability to sense the gravitational tug or 'wobble' a planet induces on its star. And the technique points the way to the future of direct exoplanet imaging.
"Performing both direct imaging and astrometry allows us to gain a full understanding of an exoplanet for the first time: measure its atmosphere, weigh it, and track its orbit all at once," said Thayne Currie, an affiliated researcher at Subaru Telescope and lead author of the study.
"This new approach for finding planets prefigures the way we will someday identify and characterise an Earth-twin around a nearby star."
Detecting HIP 99770 b is tough because the planet is faint and can get lost in the glare of its bright host star.
"This is the kind of discovery that really could have only been done from Maunakea," said Currie. "We are extremely grateful for the privilege of being able to study the heavens from this mountain."
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