Exoplanets

Following the NASA Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite mission, Vanderbilt astronomer Keivan Stassun leads the next phase of discovery to find atmospheres like our own. Read More

Stars mapped out by Vanderbilt astronomers for exploration by NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite mission and recently decommissioned Spitzer Space Telescope have led to the discovery of AU Mic b, a newly formed Neptune-like exoplanet located a relatively short 31.9 light-years away. Read More

Vanderbilt’s Keivan Stassun serves as a deputy principal investigator on the mission and is tasked with identifying the most promising stars to target in its search for habitable nearby planets. Read More

Astronomers have come up with a new and improved method for measuring the masses of millions of solitary stars, especially those with planetary systems. Read More

Visitors will have the unusual opportunity to safely view the planet Mercury as it transits directly across the face of the sun using Dyer Observatory’s solar telescopes. Read More

Researchers have developed a model that estimates the effect that a star's diet has on its chemical composition. This model will add substantially to astronomers’ understanding of the process of planet formation as well as assist in the ongoing search for Earth-like exoplanets. Read More

Vanderbilt astronomers have developed a model that predicts the effect that ingesting earth-like planets has on the chemical composition of stars like the Sun -- a capability that can aid in efforts to find Earth-like exoplanets. Read More

A team of Vanderbilt astronomers will play a key role in the planet-seeking space telescope that NASA has just approved and scheduled for launch in 2017. Read More

A small telescope with a lens no more powerful than a high-end digital camera has discovered the existence of two very unusual exoplanets. Read More