Latest news with #AT2021ueyb
NDTV
6 hours ago
- Science
- NDTV
Rare Jupiter-Sized Planet Discovered Using Phenomenon First Predicted by Einstein
Scientists from Vilnius University (VU) Faculty of Physics, along with members from Poland and other countries, discovered a rare planet using a space-time phenomenon first predicted by Albert Einstein. The planet AT2021uey b is a Jupiter-sized exoplanet located approximately 3,200 light-years away from Earth in the galactic bulge. The planet was discovered using gravitational microlensing, a method based on Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity that detects planets by measuring the bending and magnification of light from a distant star as a massive object passes in front of it. AT2021uey b orbits a small and dim M dwarf star. It completes its orbit every 4,170 days, which is roughly equivalent to 11 years on Earth. Live Science reported that AT2021uey b's shadow was first spotted in 2021 when scientists analysed data taken by the European Space Agency's Gaia telescope. The discovery of AT2021uey b, which is on the far edge of our galaxy, challenges traditional models of planetary formation, suggesting that gas giants can form in regions of the galaxy previously thought to be inhospitable. The findings, published in Astronomy & Astrophysics, open up new possibilities for understanding planetary formation and the potential for life in diverse environments throughout the universe. "This kind of work requires a lot of expertise, patience, and, frankly, a bit of luck. You have to wait for a long time for the source star and the lensing object to align and then check an enormous amount of data. Ninety percent of observed stars pulsate for various other reasons, and only a minority of cases show the microlensing effect," Dr Marius Maskoliunas, the head of the Lithuanian research team, said as quoted by "What fascinates me about this method is that it can detect those invisible bodies. Imagine a bird flying past you. You don't see the bird itself and don't know what color it is - only its shadow," the statement added. "But from it, you can, with some level of probability, determine whether it was a sparrow or a swan and at what distance from us. It's an incredibly intriguing process," Maskoliunas explained.
New York Post
17 hours ago
- Science
- New York Post
Rare Jupiter-sized planet discovered 3,200 light-years away using Einstein's space-time warping method
Astronomers used a method once theorized by Albert Einstein to find a mysterious and rare planet on the edge of our galaxy. The planet, AT2021uey b, is a Jupiter-sized gas giant located about 3,200 light-years from Earth in the galactic bulge. It takes AT2021uey b 4,170 days to orbit its dwarf star, according to a study published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. Advertisement According to Live Scence, AT2021uey b's shadow was first spotted in 2021 in data taken by the European Space Agency's Gaia telescope. It took the astronomers multiple check-ins to confirm the details of the planet. The astronomers discovered the planet using microlensing, a method used only three times previously, according to the study. Microlensing, which is based on Einstein's theory of relativity, relies on massive objects moving through the galaxy to warp the fabric of the universe, called space-time. Advertisement 3 An artist's illustration of the Gaia space telescope, which first spotted the microlensing event in 2021. ESA/ATG medialab / SWNS Dr. Marius Maskoliunas, astronomer at Vilnius University and co-author of the study, discussed in a statement posted in just how much work goes into using this method. 'This kind of work requires a lot of expertise, patience and, frankly, a bit of luck. You have to wait for a long time for the source star and the lensing object to align and then check an enormous amount of data,' Maskoliunas said in the statement. 'Ninety percent of observed stars pulsate for various other reasons, and only a minority of cases show the microlensing effect.' 3 A visualization of the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies. NASA/ESA et al. / SWNS Advertisement According to the study, microlensing occurs when a massive celestial body briefly positions itself directly in front of an even more distant star. As the planet settles in front of the star during its journey, the light begins to curve around the planet, magnifying the light of the star. According to the study, this temporary magnified light is what astronomers are searching for. Maskoliunas gave an example of how to imagine how microlensing works. 3 An illustration depicts NASA's Juno spacecraft in orbit above Jupiter. NASA/JPL-Caltech / SWNS Advertisement 'What fascinates me about this method is that it can detect those invisible bodies. Imagine a bird flying past you. You don't see the bird itself and don't know what color it is — only its shadow,' Maskoliunas said in the statement. 'But from it, you can, with some level of probability, determine whether it was a sparrow or a swan and at what distance from us. It's an incredibly intriguing process.' According to Live Science, there have been nearly 6,000 planets discovered since 1992 using two other more common practices known as transmit photometry and radial velocity. These more common practices will detect planets through host stars becoming dimmer due to said planets. They will also detect the wobble of the planets' gravitational pulls that occur.
18-06-2025
- Science
Rare exoplanet discovered in outskirts of the Milky Way
Astronomers have located a rare exoplanet on the edge of the Milky Way. The exoplanet, a gas giant named AT2021uey b, orbits a low-mass star and is located about 3,200 light-years away from Earth, according to a paper published last month in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. Its orbit around an M dwarf star -- a relatively small and cool star -- completes every 4,170 days. The researchers used a technique known as gravitational microlensing -- a method based on Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity -- to locate the planet. The presence of mass warps the fabric of space-time, similar to how a bowling ball would make a dent when placed on a trampoline, according to NASA. The effect is extreme around "very massive" objects, such as black holes and galaxies, but stars and planets can also cause a detectable degree of warping. The new exoplanet's mass is estimated to be slightly greater than Jupiter's, the researchers said. The unusual size ratio to the star it orbits led to its discovery, as detecting an Earth-type planet would have been "much more difficult," according to a press release by Vilnius University in Lithuania. Gravitational microlensing is a "rare phenomenon," the researchers said. There have only been three such cases of a planet being documented by microlensing in the history of observations, the researchers said. Astronomers search for a temporary light "pulsation" when analyzing a vast amount of data. The vast majority of observed stars -- about 90% -- pulsate for "various other reasons," with a minority of cases actually showing the microlensing effect, Marius Maskoliūna, an astronomy and astrophysics researcher at Vilnius University and co-author of the study, said in a statement. "This kind of work requires a lot of expertise, patience, and, frankly, a bit of luck," Maskoliūna said. "You have to wait for a long time for the source star and the lensing object to align and then check an enormous amount of data." In addition, most microlensing efforts are recorded at the Galactic Center -- the densest part of the Milky Way, Edita Stonkutė, an associate professor of astronomy at Vilnius University, said in a statement. AT2021uey b was found quote far from the center, in the "galactic halo, on the outskirts of the galaxy, she said. "This is only the third planet in observational history to be discovered so far from the Galactic bulge," Stonkutė said. The microlensing technique is promising because it allows the detection of the "unexpected or even invisible," the researchers said. "What fascinates me about this method is that it can detect those invisible bodies," Maskoliūna said. In collaboration with researchers from the Astronomical Observatory of the University of Warsaw, the researchers analyzed data from the European Space Agency's "Gaia" telescope and supplemented it with ground-based observations from telescopes at the Vilnius University's Molėtai Astronomical Observatory. The microlensing phenomenon was first spotted in 2021, which led the astronomers on a yearslong journey to "carefully" verify the existence of the new exoplanet, according to the release. The first discovery of an exoplanet orbiting a star was made in 1995, the researchers said. Since then, more than 6,000 exoplanets have been confirmed. However, the science is still considered "relatively young," the researchers said. "As data accumulated, we learned that many types of planetary systems are completely unlike ours -- the Solar System," Stonkutė said. "We've had to rethink planetary formation models more than once."
