November 14, 2008 - National Post, Canada
For the first time, Canadian and American astronomers have obtained photographic evidence of planets that orbit distant stars.
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The Hubble, Keck and Gemini telescopes that produced these photos are not new, but Mr. Marois said a change in the searching method, rather than new technology, made the breakthrough.
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Sunday, November 16, 2008
Pictured: First images of planets outside our solar system as new era in astronomy dawns
November 14, 2008 - Daily Mail, UK
Scientists have taken the first snapshots of another solar system, ushering in a new era in astronomy.
The infrared images show a family of three giant worlds orbiting a young hot star in the constellation of Pegasus, 130 light years from Earth. A light year is the distance light travels in a year - 6trillion miles.
In another development also reported in Science, Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope photographed a single Jupiter-sized planet called Fomalhaut b orbiting a close neighbour of the Sun just 25 light years away.
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Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute for Astrophysics and his team used the Keck and Gemini telescopes in Hawaii to find the three planets near the star called HR 8799, which is just visible to the naked eye.
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Scientists have taken the first snapshots of another solar system, ushering in a new era in astronomy.
The infrared images show a family of three giant worlds orbiting a young hot star in the constellation of Pegasus, 130 light years from Earth. A light year is the distance light travels in a year - 6trillion miles.
In another development also reported in Science, Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope photographed a single Jupiter-sized planet called Fomalhaut b orbiting a close neighbour of the Sun just 25 light years away.
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Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute for Astrophysics and his team used the Keck and Gemini telescopes in Hawaii to find the three planets near the star called HR 8799, which is just visible to the naked eye.
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New planets swim into our ken
November 14, 2008 - Sydney Morning Herald
ASTRONOMERS have parted the curtains of space to take the first photographs of planets that orbit stars other than our sun.
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Two teams took part in the milestone. The first, led by Berkeley researchers, used the Hubble space telescope to take a picture of a giant planet orbiting Fomalhaut, a star that is 25 light years from Earth.
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The other effort relied on the giant Keck and Gemini telescopes in Hawaii to image three planets surrounding the young star HR8799, 130 light years away.
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ASTRONOMERS have parted the curtains of space to take the first photographs of planets that orbit stars other than our sun.
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Two teams took part in the milestone. The first, led by Berkeley researchers, used the Hubble space telescope to take a picture of a giant planet orbiting Fomalhaut, a star that is 25 light years from Earth.
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The other effort relied on the giant Keck and Gemini telescopes in Hawaii to image three planets surrounding the young star HR8799, 130 light years away.
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Astronomers Discover New Exoplanets
November 14, 2008 - NPR
Astronomers are getting their first real glimpses of planets in orbit around distant stars.
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Meanwhile, an international team of astronomers say they've seen not just a single planet, but a small solar system around a star called HR 8799 (The name might sound like a personnel form, because astronomers sometimes can't decide whether to be scientific or romantic.)
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Astronomers are getting their first real glimpses of planets in orbit around distant stars.
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Meanwhile, an international team of astronomers say they've seen not just a single planet, but a small solar system around a star called HR 8799 (The name might sound like a personnel form, because astronomers sometimes can't decide whether to be scientific or romantic.)
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Friday, November 14, 2008
First Direct Images Of A Planetary Family Around A Normal Star
November 13, 2008 - ScienceDaily
Astronomers using the Gemini North telescope and W.M. Keck Observatory on Hawaii’s Mauna Kea have obtained the first-ever direct images identifying a multi-planet system around a normal star.
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Astronomers using the Gemini North telescope and W.M. Keck Observatory on Hawaii’s Mauna Kea have obtained the first-ever direct images identifying a multi-planet system around a normal star.
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First 'bona fide' direct images of exoplanets
November 13, 2008 - PhysicsWorld
Two teams comprising researchers from Canada, the US and the UK have taken what appear to be the first “bona fide” direct images of planets orbiting stars outside the Solar System, an achievement that has long been considered vital in the search for planets like our own.
Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Canada and colleagues have used the ground-based Gemini telescopes in Hawaii and Chile, and the Keck telescopes, also in Hawaii, to take infrared images of three giant planets that they claim are orbiting a star about 130 light-years away in the Pegasus constellation (Science Express 10.1126/science.1166585).
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Two teams comprising researchers from Canada, the US and the UK have taken what appear to be the first “bona fide” direct images of planets orbiting stars outside the Solar System, an achievement that has long been considered vital in the search for planets like our own.
Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Canada and colleagues have used the ground-based Gemini telescopes in Hawaii and Chile, and the Keck telescopes, also in Hawaii, to take infrared images of three giant planets that they claim are orbiting a star about 130 light-years away in the Pegasus constellation (Science Express 10.1126/science.1166585).
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First images captured of alien solar system
November 13, 2008 - NewScientist
Astronomers have snapped what they say is the best photographic evidence yet of planets orbiting other stars. Two new planetary systems have been imaged in the Milky Way; one offers the first glimpse of a system with multiple planets.
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Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Victoria, Canada, and colleagues found a system with three planets in an ongoing survey of 80 young stars surrounded by relatively large amounts of dust.
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The planets, which formed some 60 million years ago, are still glowing with heat from their contraction. Their march across the sky with the star, as well as their counter-clockwise orbit around it, were measured in near-infrared images taken with the Keck and Gemini North telescopes in Hawaii.
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Astronomers have snapped what they say is the best photographic evidence yet of planets orbiting other stars. Two new planetary systems have been imaged in the Milky Way; one offers the first glimpse of a system with multiple planets.
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Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Victoria, Canada, and colleagues found a system with three planets in an ongoing survey of 80 young stars surrounded by relatively large amounts of dust.
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The planets, which formed some 60 million years ago, are still glowing with heat from their contraction. Their march across the sky with the star, as well as their counter-clockwise orbit around it, were measured in near-infrared images taken with the Keck and Gemini North telescopes in Hawaii.
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Out of this World Pictures: First Direct Photos of Exoplanets
November 13, 2008 - Scientific American
Two groups of researchers searching for extrasolar planets—planets orbiting stars other than our own sun—laid claim today to an astronomy milestone: photographing extrasolar planets directly, rather than inferring their presence through effects on their parent stars.
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Marois and his team used ground-based infrared detection to seek out exoplanets around nearby, young, massive stars—those whose planets would have wide orbits and emit significant amounts of radiation as they cool from their relatively recent births millions of years ago. After narrowing some 80 candidate stars to 20 "really, really interesting" ones with infrared excess (indicating the presence of orbiting dust), the researchers settled on a particularly appealing star.
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Two groups of researchers searching for extrasolar planets—planets orbiting stars other than our own sun—laid claim today to an astronomy milestone: photographing extrasolar planets directly, rather than inferring their presence through effects on their parent stars.
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Marois and his team used ground-based infrared detection to seek out exoplanets around nearby, young, massive stars—those whose planets would have wide orbits and emit significant amounts of radiation as they cool from their relatively recent births millions of years ago. After narrowing some 80 candidate stars to 20 "really, really interesting" ones with infrared excess (indicating the presence of orbiting dust), the researchers settled on a particularly appealing star.
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Extrasolar planetary system makes pictorial debut
November 13, 2008 - ScienceNews
They’ve got the whole world in their hands. Four worlds, actually.
Two teams of extrasolar planet-hunters report that they have achieved a long-sought milestone: obtaining the first undisputed images of planets orbiting stars beyond the solar system.
One team, using the Hubble Space Telescope, has recorded a single planet around the massive star Fomalhaut, which lies just 25 light-years from Earth. The other team, using two large ground-based telescopes, has taken images of three planets orbiting a star — the first portrait of an entire planetary system outside the solar system. Details of both findings appear online November 13 in separate articles in Science.
One of the teams, led by Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Victoria, Canada, used the Gemini North and Keck 2 telescopes atop Hawaii’s Mauna Kea to image the region around a massive star called HR 8799. Marois was already carrying a tightly held secret when he boarded an airplane in July to Mauna Kea. Images his team had taken with Gemini North nine months earlier had revealed a faint point of light — a possible planet — near HR 8799, which lies about 130 light-years from Earth....
They’ve got the whole world in their hands. Four worlds, actually.
Two teams of extrasolar planet-hunters report that they have achieved a long-sought milestone: obtaining the first undisputed images of planets orbiting stars beyond the solar system.
One team, using the Hubble Space Telescope, has recorded a single planet around the massive star Fomalhaut, which lies just 25 light-years from Earth. The other team, using two large ground-based telescopes, has taken images of three planets orbiting a star — the first portrait of an entire planetary system outside the solar system. Details of both findings appear online November 13 in separate articles in Science.
One of the teams, led by Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Victoria, Canada, used the Gemini North and Keck 2 telescopes atop Hawaii’s Mauna Kea to image the region around a massive star called HR 8799. Marois was already carrying a tightly held secret when he boarded an airplane in July to Mauna Kea. Images his team had taken with Gemini North nine months earlier had revealed a faint point of light — a possible planet — near HR 8799, which lies about 130 light-years from Earth....
Seen, Not Inferred: Exoplanets Galore
November 13, 2008 - Newsweek
While all of us who are rooting for the existence of little green men have been cheered by each discovery of a planet orbiting a star other than our sun—an “exoplanet,” of which there were 322 when I checked the catalog a minute ago—there’s always been a tinge of disappointment. Every validated discovery, starting with the first in 1995, has been indirect. In other words, astronomers didn't actually see the planet beyond our solar system, but instead inferred its existence by, for instance, noticing something funny about how a star moves and realizing, gee, that funny movement must be due to a planet tugging gravitationally on the star. But this afternoon, two separate teams of astronomers, using three different telescopes, are announcing the discovery of exoplanets by, well, looking.
One team, led by Paul Kalas of the University of California, Berkeley, used the Hubble Space Telescope to image a planet they call Fomalhaut b, orbiting the star Fomalhaut, 25 light years away in the constellation Piscis Australis (the Southern Fish). The other team, anchored by Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Victoria, British Columbia, imaged three planets orbiting a star called HR 8799, 128 light years from Earth, using the Keck and Gemini telescopes. Both are being published this afternoon online by the journal Science, at its Science Express website.
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While all of us who are rooting for the existence of little green men have been cheered by each discovery of a planet orbiting a star other than our sun—an “exoplanet,” of which there were 322 when I checked the catalog a minute ago—there’s always been a tinge of disappointment. Every validated discovery, starting with the first in 1995, has been indirect. In other words, astronomers didn't actually see the planet beyond our solar system, but instead inferred its existence by, for instance, noticing something funny about how a star moves and realizing, gee, that funny movement must be due to a planet tugging gravitationally on the star. But this afternoon, two separate teams of astronomers, using three different telescopes, are announcing the discovery of exoplanets by, well, looking.
One team, led by Paul Kalas of the University of California, Berkeley, used the Hubble Space Telescope to image a planet they call Fomalhaut b, orbiting the star Fomalhaut, 25 light years away in the constellation Piscis Australis (the Southern Fish). The other team, anchored by Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Victoria, British Columbia, imaged three planets orbiting a star called HR 8799, 128 light years from Earth, using the Keck and Gemini telescopes. Both are being published this afternoon online by the journal Science, at its Science Express website.
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First Direct Image of Multiple Exoplanets Orbiting a Star
November 13, 2008 - Wired News
For the first time, astronomers have taken a visual image of a multiple-planet solar system beyond our own.
Using the Gemini North telescope and the W. M. Keck Observatory on Hawaii's Mauna Kea, researchers observed in infrared light three planets orbiting around a star about 130 light-years away from Earth, called HR 8799. The discovery, published today in Science Express, is a step forward in the hunt for planets, and life, beyond Earth.
The alien system is supersized compared to our own: All three planets are gas giants, weighing roughly 10, 10 and 7 times the mass of Jupiter, circling a parent star 1.5 times the mass of our sun, and 5 times as bright. The giant bodies (two of which are pictured above) are orbiting at roughly 25, 40, and 70 times the distance between Earth and our sun. If there are Earth-sized planets present, they are too small to see with current technology.
"This is the beginning of a capability that is really going to move the search forward," Peter Michaud of Gemini Observatory told Wired.com. "Now we can refine the technologies and continue the exploration process until we perhaps someday find something more similar to the Earth. Those goals are pretty exciting in terms of gaining a perspective on our place in the universe."
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For the first time, astronomers have taken a visual image of a multiple-planet solar system beyond our own.
Using the Gemini North telescope and the W. M. Keck Observatory on Hawaii's Mauna Kea, researchers observed in infrared light three planets orbiting around a star about 130 light-years away from Earth, called HR 8799. The discovery, published today in Science Express, is a step forward in the hunt for planets, and life, beyond Earth.
The alien system is supersized compared to our own: All three planets are gas giants, weighing roughly 10, 10 and 7 times the mass of Jupiter, circling a parent star 1.5 times the mass of our sun, and 5 times as bright. The giant bodies (two of which are pictured above) are orbiting at roughly 25, 40, and 70 times the distance between Earth and our sun. If there are Earth-sized planets present, they are too small to see with current technology.
"This is the beginning of a capability that is really going to move the search forward," Peter Michaud of Gemini Observatory told Wired.com. "Now we can refine the technologies and continue the exploration process until we perhaps someday find something more similar to the Earth. Those goals are pretty exciting in terms of gaining a perspective on our place in the universe."
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Family of planets
November 14, 2008 - Honolulu Star Bulletin
A "planet family" has been discovered for the first time around a parent star like the sun by the Gemini and Keck observatories on Mauna Kea.
"To actually see them there is significant to understand better how solar systems like our own formed, and other places in the galaxy," Gemini spokesman Peter Michaud said. "It's a major step forward in understanding how we got here and how other possible planetary systems formed and are forming throughout the universe."
The observatories announced what they called a historic discovery of a planetary "first family" yesterday in Science Express, the online version of the journal Science. The star, called HR 8799, is about 130 light-years from Earth in the constellation Pegasus.
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A "planet family" has been discovered for the first time around a parent star like the sun by the Gemini and Keck observatories on Mauna Kea.
"To actually see them there is significant to understand better how solar systems like our own formed, and other places in the galaxy," Gemini spokesman Peter Michaud said. "It's a major step forward in understanding how we got here and how other possible planetary systems formed and are forming throughout the universe."
The observatories announced what they called a historic discovery of a planetary "first family" yesterday in Science Express, the online version of the journal Science. The star, called HR 8799, is about 130 light-years from Earth in the constellation Pegasus.
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First photo of planets outside solar system revealed
November 13, 2008 - USA Today
Astronomers reported Thursday that they have the first snapshot of another solar system — one with three planets larger than Jupiter — orbiting a nearby star.
Circling the star HR 8799, the three planets "are a scaled-up version of our own solar system," says study leader Christian Marois of the National Research Council Canada. A large star about 128 light years away (a light year is about 6 trillion miles), HR 8799 resides in the constellation Pegasus, according to the online report released Thursday by the journal, Science.
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Astronomers reported Thursday that they have the first snapshot of another solar system — one with three planets larger than Jupiter — orbiting a nearby star.
Circling the star HR 8799, the three planets "are a scaled-up version of our own solar system," says study leader Christian Marois of the National Research Council Canada. A large star about 128 light years away (a light year is about 6 trillion miles), HR 8799 resides in the constellation Pegasus, according to the online report released Thursday by the journal, Science.
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Images captured of 4 planets outside solar system
November 14, 2008 - Associated Press
Earth seems to have its first fuzzy photos of alien planets outside our solar system, images captured by two teams of astronomers. The pictures show four likely planets that appear as specks of white, nearly indecipherable except to the most eagle-eyed experts. All are trillions of miles away — three of them orbiting the same star, and the fourth circling a different star.
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Earth seems to have its first fuzzy photos of alien planets outside our solar system, images captured by two teams of astronomers. The pictures show four likely planets that appear as specks of white, nearly indecipherable except to the most eagle-eyed experts. All are trillions of miles away — three of them orbiting the same star, and the fourth circling a different star.
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In a First, Astronomers Report Viewing Planets of Other Suns
November 14, 2008 - Washington Post
Staring at his computer screen in May, poking through images of the bright star Fomalhaut, astronomer Paul Kalas found himself staring at a tiny white dot. The dot appeared amid a great ring of dust circling the star. From one image to the next, the dot moved.
For four days, through the Memorial Day weekend, Kalas ransacked the possibilities before settling on a stunning conclusion: He was looking at a world, a giant planet circling Fomalhaut.
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Kalas's discovery was one of two announced yesterday that could be breakthroughs in the search for "extrasolar planets," or "exoplanets," those beyond our own solar system. The other, by Canadian astronomer Christian Marois and his colleagues, may be a triumph in triplicate, for the scientists say they have obtained images of three planets -- a scaled-up version of our solar system -- orbiting a distant star called HR 8799.
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Marois, meanwhile, used two telescopes in Hawaii to study HR 8799, which is 128 light-years away, still in our same galactic Zip code. Marois, an astronomer with the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Victoria, B.C., saw the first possible planet around HR 8799 this past spring. Then, on July 9, while taking the United flight from San Francisco to Hilo, Hawaii, he discovered what looked like a second planet lurking in the data on his laptop computer. That suggested he had found a planetary system and not just a single world.
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Staring at his computer screen in May, poking through images of the bright star Fomalhaut, astronomer Paul Kalas found himself staring at a tiny white dot. The dot appeared amid a great ring of dust circling the star. From one image to the next, the dot moved.
For four days, through the Memorial Day weekend, Kalas ransacked the possibilities before settling on a stunning conclusion: He was looking at a world, a giant planet circling Fomalhaut.
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Kalas's discovery was one of two announced yesterday that could be breakthroughs in the search for "extrasolar planets," or "exoplanets," those beyond our own solar system. The other, by Canadian astronomer Christian Marois and his colleagues, may be a triumph in triplicate, for the scientists say they have obtained images of three planets -- a scaled-up version of our solar system -- orbiting a distant star called HR 8799.
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Marois, meanwhile, used two telescopes in Hawaii to study HR 8799, which is 128 light-years away, still in our same galactic Zip code. Marois, an astronomer with the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Victoria, B.C., saw the first possible planet around HR 8799 this past spring. Then, on July 9, while taking the United flight from San Francisco to Hilo, Hawaii, he discovered what looked like a second planet lurking in the data on his laptop computer. That suggested he had found a planetary system and not just a single world.
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Astronomers claim first snaps of planets beyond the Solar System
November 13, 2008 - Nature News
Two teams of astronomers are independently claiming to have the first ever images of planets in orbit around a star other than the Sun — with pictures from one team showing three planet-like bodies orbiting a distant star.
Using the Keck and Gemini telescopes in Hawaii, one team took infrared images of three objects, each 5-13 times the mass of Jupiter, in orbit around HR 8799, a star 130 light years from Earth in the constellation Pegasus1.
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Two teams of astronomers are independently claiming to have the first ever images of planets in orbit around a star other than the Sun — with pictures from one team showing three planet-like bodies orbiting a distant star.
Using the Keck and Gemini telescopes in Hawaii, one team took infrared images of three objects, each 5-13 times the mass of Jupiter, in orbit around HR 8799, a star 130 light years from Earth in the constellation Pegasus1.
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Huge Exoplanet News Items: Pictures!!!
November 13, 2008 - Discovermagazine.com
This is incredible: For the first time, ever, astronomers have captured an optical image of a planet orbiting a star like our own.
And that’s not all: we also have a second picture showing TWO planets orbiting a second star!
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That image is the first to directly show two planets orbiting another star! It’s a near-infrared image using the giant Gemini North 8 meter telescope. Like in the Hubble image, the star’s light has been blocked, allowing the two planets to be seen (labeled b and c).
The star is called HR 8799. It’s a bit more massive (1.5 times) and more luminous (5x) than the Sun, and lies about 130 light years from Earth. The planets in this picture orbit it at distances of 6 billion km (3.6 billion miles) and 10.5 billion km (6.3 billion miles). A third planet, not seen in this image but discovered later using the Keck 10 meter telescope, orbits the star closer in at a distance of 3.8 billion km (2.3 billion miles).
So there it is. The first ever family portrait of a planetary system.
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Extrasolar planetary system makes pictorial debut
November 13, 2008 - ScienceNews.org
They’ve got the whole world in their hands. Four worlds, actually.
Two teams of extrasolar planet-hunters report that they have achieved a long-sought milestone: obtaining the first undisputed images of planets orbiting stars beyond the solar system.
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One of the teams, led by Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Victoria, Canada, used the Gemini North and Keck 2 telescopes atop Hawaii’s Mauna Kea to image the region around a massive star called HR 8799. Marois was already carrying a tightly held secret when he boarded an airplane in July to Mauna Kea. Images his team had taken with Gemini North nine months earlier had revealed a faint point of light — a possible planet — near HR 8799, which lies about 130 light-years from Earth.
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They’ve got the whole world in their hands. Four worlds, actually.
Two teams of extrasolar planet-hunters report that they have achieved a long-sought milestone: obtaining the first undisputed images of planets orbiting stars beyond the solar system.
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One of the teams, led by Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Victoria, Canada, used the Gemini North and Keck 2 telescopes atop Hawaii’s Mauna Kea to image the region around a massive star called HR 8799. Marois was already carrying a tightly held secret when he boarded an airplane in July to Mauna Kea. Images his team had taken with Gemini North nine months earlier had revealed a faint point of light — a possible planet — near HR 8799, which lies about 130 light-years from Earth.
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Astronomers capture first images of newly discovered solar system
November 13, 2008 - Astronomy.com
For the first time, astronomers have taken snapshots of a multi-planet solar system, much like ours, orbiting another star.
The new solar system orbits a dusty young star named HR8799, which is 140 light-years away and about 1.5 times the size of our Sun. Three planets, roughly 10, 10, and 7 times the mass of Jupiter, orbit the star. The size of the planets decreases with distance from the parent star, much like the giant planets do in our system.
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The team of researchers included representatives from Livermore; the National Research Council of Canada Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics; Lowell Observatory, Flagstaff, Arizona; University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA); and several other institutions. The group used high-contrast, near-infrared adaptive optics observations with the Keck and Gemini Telescopes to capture the image.
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For the first time, astronomers have taken snapshots of a multi-planet solar system, much like ours, orbiting another star.
The new solar system orbits a dusty young star named HR8799, which is 140 light-years away and about 1.5 times the size of our Sun. Three planets, roughly 10, 10, and 7 times the mass of Jupiter, orbit the star. The size of the planets decreases with distance from the parent star, much like the giant planets do in our system.
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The team of researchers included representatives from Livermore; the National Research Council of Canada Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics; Lowell Observatory, Flagstaff, Arizona; University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA); and several other institutions. The group used high-contrast, near-infrared adaptive optics observations with the Keck and Gemini Telescopes to capture the image.
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The First True Exoplanet Images…Probably
November 13, 2008 - Sky and Telescope News
For years, astronomers have been racing one another to take the first picture of a planet orbiting another star. Over the past few years, several teams have claimed to have directly imaged an extrasolar planet. But in each case, there were lingering questions about the nature of the purported planet. The objects seem unusually massive for planets, and each orbits much farther from its host star than Pluto orbits the Sun. Many astronomers argue that these objects are more accurately described as failed stars (known as brown dwarfs) rather than true planets, because they probably formed from collapsing gas clouds, like stars.
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The HR 8799 planets were imaged by a team led by Christian Marois (Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics, Canada). This group used the 10-meter Keck II telescope in Hawaii and the 8-meter Gemini telescope in Hawaii to image three pinpricks of infrared light orbiting HR 8799, a magnitude-6 star in the constellation Pegasus. Besides using an occulting mask to blot out the star’s light, the team used adaptive optics to compensate for the blurring effects of Earth’s atmosphere.
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For years, astronomers have been racing one another to take the first picture of a planet orbiting another star. Over the past few years, several teams have claimed to have directly imaged an extrasolar planet. But in each case, there were lingering questions about the nature of the purported planet. The objects seem unusually massive for planets, and each orbits much farther from its host star than Pluto orbits the Sun. Many astronomers argue that these objects are more accurately described as failed stars (known as brown dwarfs) rather than true planets, because they probably formed from collapsing gas clouds, like stars.
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The HR 8799 planets were imaged by a team led by Christian Marois (Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics, Canada). This group used the 10-meter Keck II telescope in Hawaii and the 8-meter Gemini telescope in Hawaii to image three pinpricks of infrared light orbiting HR 8799, a magnitude-6 star in the constellation Pegasus. Besides using an occulting mask to blot out the star’s light, the team used adaptive optics to compensate for the blurring effects of Earth’s atmosphere.
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Now in Sight: Far-Off Planets
November 13, 2008 - New York Times
A little more of the universe has been pried out of the shadows. Two groups of astronomers have taken the first pictures of what they say — and other astronomers agree — are most likely planets going around other stars.
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For their observations, Dr. Marois and his colleagues used the 8-meter in diameter Gemini North and the 10-meter Keck telescopes on Mauna Kea in Hawaii, both of which had been fitted with adaptive optics. Then they processed the images with a special computer program, which Dr. Marois described as “a software coronagraph,” for processing the images.
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A little more of the universe has been pried out of the shadows. Two groups of astronomers have taken the first pictures of what they say — and other astronomers agree — are most likely planets going around other stars.
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For their observations, Dr. Marois and his colleagues used the 8-meter in diameter Gemini North and the 10-meter Keck telescopes on Mauna Kea in Hawaii, both of which had been fitted with adaptive optics. Then they processed the images with a special computer program, which Dr. Marois described as “a software coronagraph,” for processing the images.
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Scientists take first photos of planets orbiting other stars
November 13, 2008 - Los Angeles Times
Marking a milestone in the search for Earth-like planets elsewhere in the universe, two teams of astronomers have parted the curtains of space to take the first pictures in history of planets orbiting stars other than our sun.
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The first team, led by Berkeley researchers, used the Hubble Space Telescope to take a picture of a giant planet orbiting the star Fomalhaut, located 25 light-years from Earth.
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The other effort relied on the giant Keck and Gemini telescopes in Hawaii to image three planets surrounding the young star HR8799, 130 light-years -- 700 trillion miles -- away. Benjamin Zuckerman, an astronomer at UCLA and a member of the Keck-Gemini team, noted that it's only been about a decade since the first exoplanet -- a planet orbiting another star -- was found. He said he never envisioned being able to take a picture of a planet orbiting another star so soon.
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Marking a milestone in the search for Earth-like planets elsewhere in the universe, two teams of astronomers have parted the curtains of space to take the first pictures in history of planets orbiting stars other than our sun.
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The first team, led by Berkeley researchers, used the Hubble Space Telescope to take a picture of a giant planet orbiting the star Fomalhaut, located 25 light-years from Earth.
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The other effort relied on the giant Keck and Gemini telescopes in Hawaii to image three planets surrounding the young star HR8799, 130 light-years -- 700 trillion miles -- away. Benjamin Zuckerman, an astronomer at UCLA and a member of the Keck-Gemini team, noted that it's only been about a decade since the first exoplanet -- a planet orbiting another star -- was found. He said he never envisioned being able to take a picture of a planet orbiting another star so soon.
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Exoplanets finally come into view
November 13, 2008 - BBC News
The first pictures of planets outside our Solar System have been taken, two groups report in the journal Science.
Visible and infrared images have been snapped of a planet orbiting a star 25 light-years away.
The planet is believed to be the coolest, lowest-mass object ever seen outside our own solar neighbourhood.
In a separate study, an exoplanetary system, comprising three planets, has been directly imaged, circling a star in the constellation Pegasus.
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Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute for Astrophysics, Canada, and his team used the Keck and Gemini telescopes in Hawaii to look near a star called HR 8799, which is just visible to the naked eye.
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The first pictures of planets outside our Solar System have been taken, two groups report in the journal Science.
Visible and infrared images have been snapped of a planet orbiting a star 25 light-years away.
The planet is believed to be the coolest, lowest-mass object ever seen outside our own solar neighbourhood.
In a separate study, an exoplanetary system, comprising three planets, has been directly imaged, circling a star in the constellation Pegasus.
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Christian Marois of the Herzberg Institute for Astrophysics, Canada, and his team used the Keck and Gemini telescopes in Hawaii to look near a star called HR 8799, which is just visible to the naked eye.
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Planetary "First Family" Discovered by Astronomers using Gemini and Keck Observatories
November 13, 2008 - NSF
Astronomers using the Gemini North telescope and W.M. Keck Observatory on Hawaii's Mauna Kea, the tallest mountain in the Hawaiian chain, have obtained the first-ever direct images identifying a multi-planet system around a normal star.
The Gemini images allowed the international team to make the initial discovery of two of the planets in the confirmed planetary system with data obtained on Oct. 17, 2007. Then, on Oct. 25, 2007, and in the summer of 2008, the team, led by Christian Marois of the National Research Council of Canada's Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics in Victoria, British Columbia, and members from the U.S. and U.K., confirmed this discovery and found a third planet orbiting even closer to the star with images obtained by the Keck II telescope. These historic infrared images of an extra-solar multiple-planet system were made possible by adaptive optics technology used to correct in real time for atmospheric turbulence, the shimmering or blinking of starlight as it passes through the earth's atmosphere.
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Astronomers capture first images of new planets
November 13, 2008 - CNN
The first-ever pictures of planets outside the solar system have been released in two studies.
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A team of American, British and Canadian astronomers and physicists, using the Gemini North and Keck telescopes on the Mauna Kea mountaintop in Hawaii, observed host star HR8799 to find three of the new planets.
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The first-ever pictures of planets outside the solar system have been released in two studies.
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A team of American, British and Canadian astronomers and physicists, using the Gemini North and Keck telescopes on the Mauna Kea mountaintop in Hawaii, observed host star HR8799 to find three of the new planets.
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Monday, November 3, 2008
State's role in astronomy seen in 3-D
Oct. 27, 2008 - Honolulu Star Bulletin
HILO » Imiloa astronomy center in Hilo, housing the world's first 3-D stereo planetarium, is now showing its first locally produced 3-D video featuring three observatories on Mauna Kea.
The 15-minute video, "Hawaii's Observatories: An Update from Maunakea," offers public showings at 2 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays, featuring the Japanese Subaru telescope, the multinational Gemini telescope and the Canada-France-Hawaii telescope. Kamaaina admission is $12 and covers all Imiloa exhibits.
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HILO » Imiloa astronomy center in Hilo, housing the world's first 3-D stereo planetarium, is now showing its first locally produced 3-D video featuring three observatories on Mauna Kea.
The 15-minute video, "Hawaii's Observatories: An Update from Maunakea," offers public showings at 2 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays, featuring the Japanese Subaru telescope, the multinational Gemini telescope and the Canada-France-Hawaii telescope. Kamaaina admission is $12 and covers all Imiloa exhibits.
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