New planet-weighing technique found
Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - 16:00
in Astronomy & Space
Although there have been about 800 extra-solar planets discovered so far in our galaxy, the precise masses of the majority of them are still unknown, as the most-common planet-finding technique provides only a general idea of an object's mass. Previously, the only way to determine a planet's exact mass was if it transits. Astronomers have, for the first time, determined the mass of a non-transiting planet.