It's not the first time astronomers have discovered so-called "rogue planets" — free-floating planets that wander aimlessly through space without a host star to orbit. But they thought it was a somewhat rare phenomenon, until now.
According to new research published in the journal Nature Astronomy, scientists have recently discovered an impressive number of these elusive exoplanets: 70 or more. It marks the largest such group ever spotted roaming the Milky Way — and it may be a crucial step in understanding the origins of the "mysterious galactic nomads," scientists say. "We did not know how many to expect and are excited to have found so many," Núria Miret-Roig, the first author of the study, said in a press release. Most exoplanets are spotted using observations of their host stars, so finding these orphaned planets is considerably more difficult. But using decades of research, the group of scientists saw infrared energy emitted by between 70 and 170 of the gas giants, young enough to still emit a detectable heat glow. "We measured the tiny motions, the colors and luminosities of tens of millions of sources in a large area of the sky," explains Miret-Roig. "These measurements allowed us to securely identify the faintest objects in this region, the rogue planets." The planets were discovered using a series of telescopes, located both on Earth and in space, including the European Space Agency's Very Large Telescope and Gaia satellite. The planets, with masses comparable to that of Jupiter, are located within the Scorpius and Ophiuchus constellations. Read more...
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