The Milky Way likely contains trillions of planets
In short: Explore the diverse reality of worlds beyond our solar system. This episode features NASA scientists explaining how we find exoplanets and what variety of alien environments actually exist.
Exoplanets are planets orbiting stars outside our solar system, ranging from gas giants larger than Jupiter to rocky worlds similar in size to Earth or Mars. These diverse bodies can experience extreme conditions, such as temperatures hot enough to boil metal, orbits that complete in just a few days, or existence as 'rogue' planets wandering the galaxy in total darkness.
With approximately 400 billion stars in the Milky Way, scientists estimate that the number of planets in our galaxy could reach into the trillions. The video features insights from NASA researchers at GSFC and JPL to explore what we have discovered so far and the search for potentially habitable worlds.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: What's an exoplanet? Astro-Investigates Ep. 2 (Exoplanets)
- Also: What is an exoplanet? - NASA Science
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