Space Observatory
Appears in 2 stories
Operational since July 2022
NASA confirmed its 6,000th exoplanet in September 2025, marking a milestone exactly 30 years after astronomers discovered the first planet orbiting a Sun-like star. The tally jumped from 5,000 to 6,000 in just three years—an acceleration driven by space telescopes and AI analysis. Over 8,000 additional candidates await confirmation.
Updated Jan 7
Operating since 2022, revolutionizing exoplanet atmospheric science
Cambridge astronomers announced they'd found dimethyl sulfide and dimethyl disulfide in the atmosphere of K2-18b—molecules that, on Earth, only life produces. The detection using JWST's mid-infrared instrument hit 3-sigma confidence, meaning a 0.3% chance it's statistical noise. If real, it's the strongest evidence yet of biology beyond our solar system.
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