Utah People's Post

The Latest News from the Beehive State

Saturday, May 21, 2022
Log in
  • National News
    • Female Caseworker Killed & Doctor Shot in Philadelphia
  • State News
    • Car Chase Leads to Drug Arrest
  • Tech & Science
  • Health
    • How to Prepare For Ticks Season
    • Magical Weight Loss Bean Scam
  • Sports
  • Business
You are here: Home / Tech & Science / Astronomers Spot A Double-Sized Earth With A Ground Telescope

Astronomers Spot A Double-Sized Earth With A Ground Telescope

December 17, 2014 Posted by Staff

Astronomers Spot A Double-Sized Earth With A Ground TelescopeWe know exoplanets are out there, outside our solar system and spaced-based telescopes help us prove it. But to spot a Double-sized Earth with a ground telescope is a first. This is what astronomers in a remote Canary Island succeeded this week. It might be just blind luck, but it also may be a new way of making acquaintance with new Earth-like exoplanets.

The Double Earth-sized exoplanet was caught as it was crossing a star by The Nordic Optical Telescope in La Palma, one of the Canary Islands. This marks the first time when such a planet is detected by a telescope based on the ground.

So far, telescopes set on Earth never managed to catch a glimpse of a planet similar to our own.  This work was left to telescopes in space. The recent observations bring a new perspective. They are evidence that, if a telescope from an isolated island could detect such a planet, others here on Earth might do it as well.

The planet was named 55 Cancri e and represents a double Earth in terms of size. The telescope managed to spot it while it was orbiting around its parent star, creating a  hollow in the star’s glow.  Researchers say that until now, no other planet that ranked in the ‘Super Earth’ category was spotted using ground detection telescopes.

However, the planet is not new to astronomers.  They’ve known the celestial body since 2004 when it was detected by a space-based telescope. The exoplanet has a 16,000 miles (26,000 kilometers) diameter and is eight times heavier than Earth.  Just to get the bigger picture, 55 Cancri e is smaller than Uranus or Neptune but, compared to our own blue ball, it’s ‘gigantic’.

The recent observation of the planet supports the method according to which other planets might be detected by looking for shadows in the glow of stars. This means that ground-based telescopes could be further employed to search for and spot exoplanets.

Scientists’ endeavors have led to the discovery of almost 2,000 exoplanets so far and future ventures guarantee their number will increase in the near future.

Ground-based telescopes face some challenges though.  Discreet alterations of stars’ shine are not always easily detected because our Earth’s atmosphere has a bullring effect. Be that as it may, there are new technological updates that aid ground-based telescopes surpass this deficiency.

Exoplanets are planets placed in an alternate solar system, circling a Sun-like star, coming in distinctive shapes and shades – from dim caramel rough Mercury to light gas monsters a few times bigger than Jupiter.

Image Source: VOA News

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr

Filed Under: Tech & Science Tagged With: Alien exoplanet, ground-based telescope spots alien 'Super-Earth', Nordic Optical Telescope spots new planet twice the size of Earth, spotted by ground-based telescope, telescope detects Super Earth 40 light years away, twice the size of the Earth

Woman working out at the gym

Just 23% of Americans Are Working Out Enough in Their Spare Time

June 29, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Poliovirus Therapy Gives Brain Cancer Patients New Hope (Study)

June 29, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

United Airlines airplane

Passenger Mysteriously Dies on United Airlines flight Bound for Boston

June 28, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Breakfast sandwich

Here Are Some Foods No Nutritionist Would Ever Eat

June 27, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Poppy flower

UN Warns of Surge in Opium-based Drugs and Cocaine Supply

June 27, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

U.S.-Canada border

French Jogger Detained 2 Weeks for Accidentally Crossing Border

June 26, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Plus size model

Normalizing Plus Size Could Fuel Obesity Crisis (Study)

June 25, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Giant manta ray

Unique Manta Ray Nursery Spotted off Texas Coast

June 23, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

The rainbow flag

WHO Scraps Transgenderism from List of Mental Illnesses

June 22, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

456 People Dead at U.K. Hospital after Taking too Many Painkillers

June 21, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Kenyan girls dancing

Kenyans Facing Poor Nutrition as Supermarket Shopping Is on the Rise

June 20, 2018 By Amelia Donovan

Pages

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy GDPR
  • Staff
  • Terms and Conditions

Recent Posts

  • Just 23% of Americans Are Working Out Enough in Their Spare Time
  • Poliovirus Therapy Gives Brain Cancer Patients New Hope (Study)
  • Passenger Mysteriously Dies on United Airlines flight Bound for Boston
  • Here Are Some Foods No Nutritionist Would Ever Eat
  • UN Warns of Surge in Opium-based Drugs and Cocaine Supply
  • French Jogger Detained 2 Weeks for Accidentally Crossing Border
  • Normalizing Plus Size Could Fuel Obesity Crisis (Study)

Related Articles

  • Crosses on a wall

    Religious People Live Longer, Are Less Stressed than Atheists, Study

    Jun 15, 2018
  • Antineutrino Detector

    Scientists Discover an Even More Elusive Particle than Neutrinos

    Jun 5, 2018
  • Funny Albert Einstein

    Time Travel Is Already Here

    May 30, 2018
  • Planet 2003UB313

    Scientists Found Evidence that Elusive Planet 9 May Be Real

    May 18, 2018
  • Kuiper Belt Object

    This Asteroid in Kuiper Belt Is Nothing Scientists Have Seen Before

    May 11, 2018
  • Elephant raising its trunk

    Elephants Communicate with Their Feet, Scientists Confirm

    May 9, 2018
  • Starbucks store

    Black Men Settle for $1 Each after Racist Arrest at Starbucks

    May 3, 2018
  • Tech addiction

    Facebook Pioneers Forming Coalition to Lobby Against Tech Addiction

    Feb 5, 2018
  • Kaspersky Co-founder Natalia Kasperskaya

    Kaspersky Boss: Bitcoin Was Created by U.S. Govt to Fund CIA’s Black Ops

    Feb 1, 2018
  • Amazon Go shopper

    Amazon Gets Rid of Cashiers at Its Check-Out Free Store

    Jan 30, 2018

Categories

  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Health
  • National News
  • Nature
  • Provo
  • Salt Lake News
  • Science
  • Sports
  • State News
  • Tech & Science
  • Technology
  • Uncategorized
  • West Jordan
  • West Valley City
  • World

Copyright © 2022 utahpeoplespost.com

About · Privacy Policy · Terms of Use · Site Map · Contact