Wobbling Stars and Alien Planets

 Astronomers call alien worlds "exoplanets."  An exoplanet is a planet orbiting a star other than our sun.

For centuries, people assumed that other worlds existed, but only recently did astronomers detect exoplanets for real.

At first, the detection techniques and equipment could only spot huge planets (as big or bigger than Jupiter) that tugged hard on its star.

Image from the course "Astrobiology: Exploring Other Worlds" from the University of Arizona

Imagine you are spinning around while holding a bucket of English peas covered in squeeze cheese. As you spin, the bucket tugs on you, and you have to lean back to make up for the weight.

The same happens when an exoplanet (the bucket) spins around a star (you). The heavier the planet, the more the star is tugged. The star actually wobbles through space!

Astronomers can measure a star's wobble using a "radial velocity" technique.

They started by finding big Jupiter-size planets. Then they got better and started finding smaller Neptune-sized planets. Nowadays, the techniques and equipment have improved, and astronomers are finding Earth-sized planets that exert a tiny tug on the star. 

The tiny star wobble is exciting since it means that planets like ours may be common. Could it mean that these planets also have alien creatures? I bet some of them do!

I like to paint exoplanets.  Here are two companions floating along the dusty arm of a spiral galaxy.

Planetary Art

I enjoy creating art on a computer and with real paint.  

Below are some fanciful exoplanets I painted recently.

An exoplanet is a planet that is outside our solar system.  No one has seen a real exoplanet yet, but I have some guesses about how some of them look.

I made some mistakes on this one, but it's ok.  I fixed them later.

I painted these on poster boards.  You don't have to spend a lot of money on canvases.

These planets orbit near a black hole.

These planets are hanging on my wall in my basement.

I also post art and other space topics here: https://www.facebook.com/RamoneRocketeer

Black Hole Art

More info: https://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/starsgalaxies/black_hole_description.html

From NASA...

A black hole is an astronomical object with a gravitational pull so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape it. A black hole’s “surface,” called its event horizon, defines the boundary where the velocity needed to escape exceeds the speed of light, which is the speed limit of the cosmos. Matter and radiation fall in, but they can’t get out.

Two main classes of black holes have been extensively observed. Stellar-mass black holes with three to dozens of times the Sun’s mass are spread throughout our Milky Way galaxy, while supermassive monsters weighing 100,000 to billions of solar masses are found in the centers of most big galaxies, ours included.

What if an ion-drive probe could visit an unnamed gas giant orbiting near a black hole?  It might look like this.

International Observe the Moon Night

More info: https://moon.nasa.gov/observe-the-moon-night/

From NASA...

When you look up in the sky at night, often the brightest object you can see is our Moon! Earth only has one Moon. So, no matter where you are on Earth, the Moon you see is the same one that everyone else sees. But, every person’s view of that same Moon is a little bit different!

Why not check out what the Moon looks like from where you live? You can join others around the world in a night of Moon watching on October 16, for International Observe the Moon Night! 

This is some moon art from my Rocket Team science fiction blog at https://ramonerocketeer.blogspot.com/

September Space Art Challenge

Deadline: September 30, 2021

More info: https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/art-challenge/en/

From NASA...

September’s drawing prompt:

This month’s art prompt: Draw a view of the Moon on Halloween night! Is the Moon helping to light the way for trick-or-treaters? Can you spot the Moon above your neighborhood Halloween decorations?

Hint: This Halloween, the Moon will be in the waning crescent phase. Check out our page on the Moon’s phases to learn more about what this means.

Submit your drawings between 9/2/21 and 9/30/21. Selected art submissions will appear on the website during the first week of October!

This is some moon art I created for the Rocket Team series of science fiction books.
You can see more at https://ramonerocketeer.blogspot.com/