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TOI-7169 b is a giant planet, known as a hot Jupiter, that orbits a star with very low metal content. Most planets are found around stars rich in elements heavier than hydrogen and helium, but TOI-7169 b challenges this trend by orbiting a metal-poor star. This discovery helps scientists understand how planets can form in environments with fewer heavy elements. The planet was detected using data from the TESS space telescope and ground-based o...

K2-18 b is a temperate sub-Neptune planet orbiting a red dwarf star, making it a key target for understanding atmospheres beyond our Solar System. Recent observations with the James Webb Space Telescope have provided new insights into its atmospheric composition and structure, helping to bridge the gap between planets like Neptune and the more commonly studied hot-Jupiters. Researchers used a detailed computer model to study K2-18 b's atmosphe...

Hot Jupiters and ultra-hot Jupiters are gas giant planets that orbit very close to their stars, making them excellent targets for atmospheric studies. This research examined five such planets—WASP-50b, WASP-117b, WASP-156b, WASP-167b, and WASP-173Ab—using high-resolution spectroscopy to search for atmospheric signals. These planets are located near the so-called Neptune desert, a region where Neptune-sized planets are rare at short orbital period...

WISPIT 2 is a young star surrounded by a multi-ringed disk, already known to host a giant planet, WISPIT 2b, in a wide gap. This study confirms the existence of a second planet, WISPIT 2c, using new imaging and spectroscopic data from the VLT/SPHERE and VLTI/GRAVITY instruments. The observations reveal a point-like source close to the star, with a K-band spectrum showing features typical of a young giant planet, including carbon monoxide absorpti...

GK Persei, a nova that erupted in 1901, continues to surprise astronomers more than a century later. Using data from the SPHEREx space telescope, researchers discovered a large, bipolar shell of molecular hydrogen surrounding the nova. This shell, measuring 18 by 10 arcminutes, matches the shape and location of the known H-alpha nebulosity around GK Persei, which was previously thought to be an ancient planetary nebula. The hydrogen shell is m...

The Gaia mission’s precise astrometric data has enabled the discovery of new exoplanet candidates, but confirming these planets can be challenging. In 2022, Gaia Data Release 3 (DR3) announced a candidate planet around the bright, Sun-like star HD 12800. However, follow-up observations using the TRES spectrograph failed to detect any evidence of the proposed planet. The data show that if the planet had existed as originally reported, it would hav...

DX Chamaeleontis (HD 104237) is a binary star system surrounded by a compact, asymmetric ring of dust and gas at a radius of 0.43 astronomical units. This ring lies just outside the binary’s orbit, much closer than expected for a typical circumbinary disk. Normally, the strong gravity of the binary would clear out the inner region, creating a large gap between the stars and the disk. Previous simulations, assuming the disk orbits in the same ...

The 70 Ophiuchi AB binary system, just 5.1 parsecs from Earth, is a prime target for future searches for Earth-like planets. Astronomers combined new radial velocity data from the Planet Finder Spectrograph with decades of previous measurements and astrometry to refine the orbits and masses of both stars. The study found no evidence for giant planets around either star, but set strong limits on what kinds of planets could still be hiding there. ...

High-resolution spectroscopy is a powerful tool for studying the atmospheres of exoplanets. This research analyzed 50 transits of 14 different exoplanets, ranging from super-Earths to ultra-hot Jupiters, using data from the SPIRou instrument. The team used automated data reduction and advanced atmospheric retrieval techniques to search for molecular signatures in these planets’ atmospheres. The study confirmed previous detections of water (H2O...