Our Cosmic Neighbors

Astronomers in Hawaii, California, and Arizona have discovered a solar system like ours only 54 light-years away. There is a planetary system orbiting a star, but it differs in that the three closest planets all orbit their sun in just 5, 15, and 24 days. This star and system was found using the Automated Planet Finder (APF) Telescope. The telescope measures the gravitational pull from the planets on the stars to map out the system's progress, then uses light to measure the validity of the planetary discoveries. APF is revolutionary because it is entirely automatic and needs to humans to function it. It will search for new planets every time there is a clear night, all night, without any humans. The star, named HD 7924, was first found with it's innermost planets in 2009. There have actually been discoveries of many thousand extra-solar planets, which have proven to be very common in our Milky Way. The discovery of a planetary system around HD 7924 is important because the three planets that are orbiting it are unlike anything that we have seen. Their masses are 7-8 times as much as the earth, with orbits that are extremely close to their sun.

This was an intriguing article to me because I love space exploration and wondering what's out there past what we know. I think that the invention of the APF is brilliant because now we can be looking for extraterrestrial systems and life 24/7, without the need of a human to be on guard. It's also extremely interesting that there are such varieties in the planetary systems throughout the universe. To imagine a planet that orbits it's sun in just 5 days, but still with the mass of 7-8 times of the Earth is just extraordinary to me. I can't even comprehend how many more planetary systems there must be out there, and with it, extraterrestrial life.