TrES-2b: Coal Black

Found during the Transatlantic Exoplanet Survey, TrES-2b is one of the darkest planets we’ve ever been able to see. Similarly sized to Jupiter, this coal black planet is less reflective than black acrylic paint. Jupiter, on the other hand, reflects more than a third of the sunlight that reaches it.

TrEs-2b is also burning up as it orbits its star at only three million miles. It’s not clear what makes the planet so dark. There are hues of red that emit a faint glow. The darkened planet is 750 light-years away in the Draco constellation.


Kepler 452b: Earth’s Cousin

A planet that’s more equally matched to Earth floats along some 500 light years away from our planet. It’s no larger than 10 percent more of Earth’s size. It encircles a red dwarf star with a 130-day orbit. A smaller sized planet is more likely to harbor and support life, especially inside the habitable zone.

Inhabitants on this planet would feel about twice as heavy as they did on earth. The planet is a lot older than our sun as well as it clocks in at about 6 billion years old. There’s no confirmation whether or not the planet is rocky or gaseous.


Proxima b: Close to Home

One of our closest star systems to us known as Proxima Centauri unveiled its planet to us a few years ago. A roughly Earth-sized planet orbiting our nearest neighbor, Proxima B is the closest exoplanet we’ve ever found in the habitable zone. There are a few caveats to its potential habitability. For one, it orbits a red-dwarf star which is a lot cooler than our sun. It’s also likely that the planet is tidally locked to the star, similar to our moon. This would subject it to stellar flares.

Scott Gaudi, an astronomy professor at Ohio State University stated that: "This thing is being bombarded by a fair amount of high-energy radiation. It's not obvious if it's going to have a magnetic field strong enough to prevent its whole atmosphere from getting blown away. But those are really hard calculations, and I certainly wouldn't put my money either way on that."

Despite the unknowns, this discovery was a major stepping stone for finding exoplanets close to our backyard of the galaxy. An earth size planet this close to home gives us hope for future discoveries.


TRAPPIST-1f: Seven Wonders

An exoplanet system called TRAPPIST-1 named so for The Transiting Planets and Planetesimals Small Telescope, located a system of seven planets all within the habitable zone and relatively close to us on a galactic scale. At only 40 light-years away in the constellation Aquarius, TRAPPIST-1f part of the seven wonders is a rocky planet that could have liquid water.

This discovery set a new record for the most amount of planets in a habitable zone orbiting a star outside of our own solar system. There is a potentiality that all seven of these planets could have liquid water.


GJ 504 b: Pure Pink

NASA scientists discovered one of the youngest and most interesting planets in GJ 504 b. Only 57 light years away from Earth, the exoplanet is thought to be only 100-200 million years old. The insights into this planet are giving astronomers a first-hand look into planet development. According to infrared cameras, it’s a deep shade of pink. It also has fewer clouds than the majority of observed gas-giants.

Michael McElwain, who was part of the discovery team stated that: “If we could travel to this giant planet, we would see a world still glowing from the heat of its formation with a color reminiscent of a dark cherry blossom, a dull magenta.” According to current models, gas giants usually form within a certain range from their host star. GJ 504, the pink wonder goes well beyond the established range.