Searching for Planets Around Vega: A Summary of JWST Observations
Astronomers used the James Webb Space Telescope to search for planets around Vega, a star known for its prominent debris disk. While they detected two distant objects, these were likely extragalactic sources, not planets. The study set strict limits on the possible sizes of any planets in Vega’s system, ruling out planets larger than Jupiter within 10 AU. The smoothness of the debris disk suggests that any planets present are likely smaller than 0.3 times the mass of Jupiter.
Revisiting HD 28185: The Surprising Discovery of an Outer Planet in a Saturn-like Orbit
Astronomers recently revisited the exoplanet system around the star HD 28185, leading to a surprising discovery. While it was already known to host a giant planet with an Earth-like orbit, new research by Alexander Venner and his team revealed a second planet, HD 28185 c, previously thought to be a brown dwarf. This outer planet, about six times the mass of Jupiter, follows a Saturn-like orbit, making it one of the most distant exoplanets detected through radial velocity and astrometry methods. The findings offer exciting insights into how distant giant planets may be more common than previously thought.