Planets survived birth in harsh, stormy star cluster, study says
Friday, June 28, 2013 - 01:30
in Astronomy & Space
Astronomers peering at stellar data from the Kepler space telescope have discovered a surprising find: two planets smaller than Neptune that appear to have formed even in the harsh, unwelcoming environment of a star cluster. The discovery, published in the journal Nature, may show that planetary systems are more robust – and far more common – than previously thought.