SUNSET: 
Proxima Centauri Has Sun-Like Cycle
Observations confirm that the closest star to our solar system has a regular magnetic cycle similar to our Sun.
Could Spacecraft Make it to Proxima Centauri?
Dust and gas between stars would pose a threat to spacecraft en route from Earth to the Alpha Centauri system — and scientists are seriously considering the problem now that the prospect of interstellar travel is no longer sci-fi.
Exoplanet Found Around Proxima Centauri
Astronomers have discovered a planet in the habitable zone of the closest star to the Sun.
NASA’s K2 Mission Confirms 100+ Exoplanets
Kepler’s K2 mission has confirmed 104 new exoplanets — including a rocky, four-planet system.
Exoplanet Found in Triple Star System
Astronomers have retracted the discovery of a giant planet with an exceptionally wide orbit in a young system of three suns.
Giant Planets and Wonky Orbits
Kepler-108 is the first system observed with really wonky orbits, which may be a result of giant planets bumping into each other.
Newborn Exoplanets Point to Early Chaos
A recent glut of exoplanet research reveals the early chaos that helped shape planetary systems.
The Gaseous Footprints of Baby Planets
Astronomers re-analyzed two-year-old data from the ALMA observatory in Chile and discovered gas gaps that probably indicate baby planets in the disk around a young star.
Disk Around HR 8799 Hints at Hidden Fifth Planet
A high-resolution ALMA image of the HR 8799 planetary disk suggests undiscovered planet.
Kepler’s 1,284 Newly Confirmed Planets
Even though Kepler’s primary mission ended three years ago, the data it collected just revealed a mother lode: 1,284 newly confirmed planets.
Light Echoes Map Planet-forming Disk
Light’s finite speed helped astronomers pinpoint the location of the “inner wall” of the disk of dust and gas that’s feeding a fast-growing baby star.
Earth-size Planets Around Nearby Dwarf Star
Astronomers just discovered three planets, two of which are roughly the size of Earth, orbiting a dim nearby dwarf star. Their proximity makes their atmospheres ripe for observing.
$100 Million for Fast Probes to Alpha Centauri. Yes, Really.
Yuri Milner commits $100 million to Breakthrough Starshot, a research and development project toward sending interstellar nanoprobes to Alpha Centauri.
Hot Nights, Hotter Days on Exoplanet 55 Cancri e
A new thermal map of a super-Earth exoplanet is puzzling astronomers.
Exoplanet in the Hyades Star Cluster
Professional and amateur astronomers working together have found a young exoplanet in the Hyades star cluster. The planet is weirdly large, given its host star.
Hubble Sheds Light on Super Exoplanets
New observations from the Hubble Space Telescope are helping characterize the atmospheres of exotic planets such as 55 Cancri e.
Hunting for Planets Around Proxima Centauri
The Pale Red Dot Initiative has begun the search in earnest for exoplanets orbiting the nearest star to Earth besides the Sun.
Hubble Peers Inside Exoplanets' Atmospheres
Astronomers studying hot Jupiter exoplanets revealed when and how clouds form on these alien worlds.
Kepler’s Giant Exoplanet Candidates — Real or Not?
A new study shows that about half of Kepler’s giant exoplanet candidates aren’t real planets. But astronomers expected this.
Forming Exoplanets Near and Very Far
Astronomers at the Extreme Solar Systems III conference announced several exciting results this week.
