Saturday 23 February 2013

Kepler-37

Another interesting star system discovered, this time by a crowd-funded astroseismological project. Kepler-37, 210 light years away in Lyra, has three observed planets, all on the smaller, rocky end of the scale. K-37b is the smallest exoplanet yet known, only about the size of the Moon! Surely we're going to have some kind of exo-dwarf-planet debate soon, if tiny ones like this are turning up? It's all on Wiki.



In a vaguely related note: I hereby suggest that any planetoid discovered that has its own moons should be named Gozer, and the moons Vinz Clortho and Zuul. Vigo and Ivo Shandor may be reserved for any further moons (after that we'd probably have to start raiding Real Ghostbusters characters).

Anyway, it's my birthday. I'm off to have fun.

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