New planet discovered a mere 8 light years from Earth

17 Jun 2002

The closest extra-solar planet yet discovered orbits the star Lalande 21185, only 8.1 light years from Earth. George Gatewood of the University of Pittsburgh observed a telltale wobble in the light coming from the star, indicating the presence of a Jupiter-sized planet circling the star in a Saturn-sized orbit. Gatewood's data, presented at the meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Madison, WI, even hinted at the possibility of other planets in the same solar system.

Yet another planet has been found by Geoff Marcy of San Francisco State and Paul Butler of Berkeley, who announced two new planets in January 1996. Their new find is a Jupiter-sized planet orbiting the star Rho Cancri (40 light years from Earth) at a distance of only 0.1 astronomical units. It completes a "year" in only about two Earth weeks.