by Ludwig Scheibe | Nov 20, 2024 | All, All about exoplanets, Detection methods
by Ludwig Scheibe (TU Berlin), November 2024 A planet’s atmosphere, that means the gas layer that envelopes it, provides us with valuable information about the conditions present there. It has a critical role in the planet’s heat balance, tells us about processes in...
by Tanja Schumann | May 8, 2024 | All, All about exoplanets, Detection methods
The Spectrum of light and what it tells us by Ludwig Scheibe (TU Berlin), July 2024 One fundamental and essential tool in the study of exoplanets is the study of light spectra. It is useful to have an understanding of the essential concepts behind spectroscopy and its...
by admin | Mar 10, 2023 | All, Astrometry, Detection methods
How it works: Like the radial velocity method, this technique makes use of the fact that star and planet both orbit a shared center of mass. For systems that we look at “from the top”, this leads to periodic shifts in the star’s position, which can be tracked with...
by admin | Mar 10, 2023 | All, Detection methods, Direct Imaging
by Ludwig Scheibe (TU Berlin), October 2024 Without a lot of prior knowledge, upon hearing “discovering planets around other stars” most people would probably think something like this: Take a powerful telescope, ‘zoom in’ really closely to a...
by admin | Mar 10, 2023 | All, Detection methods, Gravitational lensing
How it works: According to Einstein’s general theory of relativity, time and space are merged into one quantity called spacetime. Under this theory, massive objects cause space-time to bend, and gravity is simply the bending of space-time. When light moves through...
by admin | Mar 10, 2023 | All, Detection methods, Transit method
by Ludwig Scheibe (TU Berlin), October 2024 Imaging an exoplanet directly is a difficult process that is only doable in a select few cases. Thus, we need indirect methods of detecting and studying these elusive worlds. The most successful one by sheer number found is...
