Outside the Milky Way solar system, there are many planets orbiting other stars, which are called Exoplanets in extrasolar.
From an early age, we are introduced to the eight planets in the Milky Way solar system, from Mercury to Neptune. But outside the solar system, there are many planets orbiting other stars, which are called exoplanets in extrasolar.
Exoplanet research has been carried out NASA and other space organizations, including using new tools such as the James Webb Space Telescope. But recently, NASA asked for the public’s help to learn more about exoplanets detected in the Exoplanet Watch program.
“With Exoplanet Watch, you can learn how to observe exoplanets and perform data analysis using software that real NASA scientists use,” said Rob Zellem, creator of Exoplanet Watch and astrophysicist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in a statement reported by Digital Trends (17 /1).
The Exoplanet Watch project has two parts, one involving observations for those with access to telescopes, and one involving identifying exoplanets in existing data.
Even if you don’t have access to equipment other than a computer or smartphone, you can still help study exoplanets by requesting access to data collected by robotic telescopes and assisting with data analysis.
This is necessary because observing an exoplanet passing in front of its parent star – in an event called a transit – is only half the challenge of finding a new planet. These transits result in a decrease in the star’s brightness, but this decrease is very small, usually less than 1% of the star’s brightness.’
Therefore, transits need to be observed many times manually to find out the planet’s orbit. This main task requires human assistance, where computers are still lacking, such as recognizing patterns, analyzing more data for speed of discovery, and characterization of exoplanets that can be improved.
To join the program, Friends of Tech can follow instructions on the Exoplanet Watch website. There it will be explained how to carry out data analysis, through the steps that are also used by researchers to carry out this work.
The Exoplanet Watch program has actually been running since 2018, but is only available to a limited number of people. Recently, its access was expanded to the public, with the aim of engaging new people in astronomy as well as gathering more data.
“I hope this program lowers the barriers of science for many people and inspires the next generation of astronomers to join our field,” said Zellem.
