Cosmos
Cosmos is a quarterly science magazine. We aim to inspire curiosity in ‘The Science of Everything’ and make the world of science accessible to everyone.
By Cosmos
The James Webb Space Telescope has added huge energy to the hunt for exoplanets. And we’re learning that they are very much NOT like Earth.
So, what are the most bizarre planets we found in 2024?
New exoplanet’s cotton candy-density can’t be explained
Astronomers continue to be puzzled about the formation of the so-called cotton candy planets, and now they’ve found another one that has the least density of any exoplanet yet found.
Record-breaking exoplanet found by citizen scientists
A planet in a binary star system has been found by a team of astronomers working with citizen scientists.
The planet is also a record breaker. Its star is the brightest known to host a transiting planet in the “habitable” zone – where liquid water can exist on the planet’s surface.
Youngest transiting exoplanet shows how planets form
A giant planet orbiting a very young star could be the youngest transiting exoplanet found. Its discovery could shed light on how planets form.
Highly eccentric exoplanet helps solve hot Jupiter mystery
An international team of astronomers has found a huge exoplanet with a “super-eccentric” orbit, more elliptical than any previously discovered.
The bizarre planet, which also orbits backwards, could help to solve the mystery of how “hot Jupiters” form.
Exoplanet found around our closest lone star
An exoplanet has been discovered orbiting Barnard’s Star – the nearest single star to Earth (apart from the Sun), only 6 light-years away.
Barnard’s star has long been thought to be a prime candidate for the detection of Earth-like exoplanets. A false alarm in 2018 might have dashed hopes. But astronomers are a patient bunch.
New planet spotted in super puff system from timing mismatch
Ever had your plans thrown off by something happening 2 hours earlier than you thought it would? Confused 12- and 24-hour clocks, perhaps?
When it happened to a team of astronomers, they discovered a new planet.
The exoplanet was spotted because another planet in the same star system passed in front of its sun 2 hours earlier than predicted.
Evidence mounts for undiscovered planet in Solar System
This one isn’t an exoplanet – which makes it, quite possibly, the weirdest one of all.
The possibility that there might be a large, unknown planet lurking in the outer Solar System far beyond Pluto has long been a staple of science fiction.
But for the past decade, astronomers have been finding it increasingly likely that something big – often called Planet X – might actually be out there. And a new study has substantially raised the likelihood that it really exists.