Recently, an international team of astronomers, working with data from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission, announced the discovery of a new exoplanet located about 73 light-years away in the Pisces constellation.
The new planet, called HD21749b, is roughly two and a half times the size of Earth, making it the smallest planet TESS has discovered yet. HD21749b orbits a bright, nearby star and completes a lap around it every 36 days.
Since the star is relatively bright and close enough to be observed with ground-based observatories, astronomers should be able to detect and study any additional planets that share HD21749b’s system.
They may even be able to characterize the planet’s atmosphere.
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What is the newest planet discovered?
The newest planet to be discovered is called TOI-1338 b. It was discovered in January 2020 and is located in the constellation Pictor, about 1,300 light-years away from Earth. It is estimated to be 6.
9 times the size of Earth and its orbit around two stars was the first of its kind to be discovered. TOI-1338 b is classified as a “hot Saturn” due to its temperatures being over 1000º Celsius, making it too hot to support life.
It has a very short orbital period of just 15. 2 days, and it’s parent stars are also relatively close, only 1. 1 million kilometers apart. Due to its mass, composition and size, scientists believe that TOI-1338 b is a gas giant and is likely composed of hydrogen and helium.
Although it is too hot to host life, this new planet has generated exciting, new insights into the formation of galactic systems and may lead to the discovery of other systems in the universe.
Is there a 10th planet?
The jury is still out on whether there is a 10th planet in our solar system. In 2006, astronomer Mike Brown and colleagues discovered an object orbiting beyond Neptune that they called “Xena. ” Since then, there has been a debate about whether or not Xena should be considered a full-fledged planet, or if it should be more accurately classified as a “dwarf planet,” a category that includes the recently reclassified Pluto.
To complicate matters further, in 2014, a team of researchers discovered “2012 VP-113,” which sits even farther away from the Sun than Xena and is estimated to be 300 kilometers in diameter. This discovery has raised questions about whether it could also be a planet.
The International Astronomical Union has thus far declined to establish a formal definition of what constitutes a “planet,” meaning that any decision on whether Xena or any other object is a planet remains unofficial.
So while it’s possible that there is a 10th planet in our solar system, the scientific community hasn’t reached a consensus to officially classify an object as a planet.
When was the last time we discovered a planet?
The last time a planet was officially discovered was on February 22, 2020. This planet, named TOI 700 d, was discovered by NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). It is located about 100 light-years away from Earth and is part of a three-star system that includes a sun-like star called TOI 700.
It is the only planet so far found in this system and is thought to be roughly two-thirds the size of Earth, making it the smallest exoplanet yet discovered by TESS. It orbits its host star every 37 days and is located in the habitable zone, meaning it is at the right distance from its host star to potentially have liquid water on its surface and perhaps even be able to support life.
Scientists will continue to observe this planet and the other exoplanets discovered by TESS to learn more about these distant worlds.
What is the hidden planet?
The hidden planet is a hypothetical planet hypothesized to exist beyond the orbit of Pluto. Its existence was first proposed by planetary scientists in 2014, and has since been the subject of debate.
Proponents believe that there is an undiscovered planet larger than Earth orbiting beyond Pluto, while skeptics suggest that the evidence for a hidden planet is inconclusive.
The proposed planet is thought to be about 10 times the size of Earth and located in the outer reaches of the Solar System, between 100 and 200 astronomical units (AU) away. Proponents argue that the outer regions of the Solar System have an unusually low density of smaller trans-Neptunian objects (objects beyond Neptune in the Solar System) which could indicate a large undiscovered planet.
This planet could explain the current orbital behavior of objects in the Kuiper belt (a region beyond Neptune) which behave in a manner that cannot be explained by the known planets or their moons.
Although the existence of a hidden planet has not been confirmed, it continues to be an interesting theory that has yet to be disproven. If the hidden planet is eventually confirmed, the discovery could provide valuable insight about the Solar System and potentially lead to uncovering new information about the outer regions of space.
Where is the 10th planet now?
The 10th planet, commonly referred to as Planet X or Planet 9, is thought to be a large, distant planet located somewhere beyond Pluto. Scientists believe that this planet has an extremely elongated and inclined orbit which takes it as far as 1000 to 2000 AUs (astronomical units) from the sun.
This far-flung orbit means that it is extremely difficult to observe and study the planet from Earth. Unfortunately, the exact location of Planet X still remains a mystery. Scientists have made some predictions about the planet’s size, mass, and orbital characteristics, but there is still much work to be done to accurately locate and identify it.
For now, the 10th planet remains a tantalizing mystery in the depths of our solar system.
Is the tenth planet missing?
No, the tenth planet is not missing. The concept of a “tenth planet” comes from the initial discovery of the first eight planets in the solar system and the additional discovery of Pluto in 1930. After Pluto’s initial discovery, some astronomers theorized that another planet must exist beyond Pluto.
This planet came to be known as the tenth planet in astronomical discourse. However, further research and advancement of technology proved that Pluto was far too small to be classified as a full planet, and it instead became classified as a dwarf planet.
Therefore, there is no official tenth planet in the solar system, as the idea was ultimately disproven.
What are the 15 planets in order?
The 15 planets in order starting from closest to the Sun are Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Dwarf Planet Ceres, Pluto, Haumea, Makemake, Eris, Gonggong, and Vulca. Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun and is the smallest of the eight “traditional” planets, while Neptune is the most distant planet and the fourth-largest, after Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus.
Ceres is the largest known member of the asteroid belt and was categorized as a dwarf planet by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) in 2006. Pluto, Haumea, Makemake, Eris and Gonggong are also classified as dwarf planets.
The controversial notion of a ninth planet, often referred to as Planet X or Planet Nine, has yet to be confirmed and remains under investigation.
Has any planet been destroyed?
Unfortunately, to our knowledge, no planet has ever been completely destroyed. Even in cases where small planets or asteroids have collided, the result is typically that their large pieces simply get re-arranged into a new formation, such as a ring system, or the pieces vaporize due to the immense energy released by the impact.
There have also been some simulations that suggest a sufficiently large impact could completely vaporize a planet, but this has never been observed and is highly unlikely due to the rarity of such an event.
On the other hand, while planets cannot be destroyed, their atmospheres and surfaces can be changed drastically. For example, the planet Venus was much like Earth until its atmosphere was transformed by an unknown event that resulted in massive global warming due to a runaway greenhouse effect.
And in the future, planets in our solar system may become uninhabitable if their atmospheres are too greatly altered by the addition of greenhouse gases.
What planet is no named anymore?
The planet formerly known as “the ninth planet,” or “Planet Nine,” is no longer officially recognized by any astronomical organization. Initially revealed in 2016 and touted as a potential alternative to the popular model of our Solar System, the potential existence of Planet Nine was the cause of much controversy and speculation among scientists.
Although there has been some evidence and speculation regarding its potential presence, the evidence has since been called into question. Thus, the planet formerly known as “Planet Nine” is no longer officially recognized by any professional astronomical organization.
