Tom Jacobs of Bellevue, Washington, loves treasure hunts. Since 2010, the former US naval officer has participated in online volunteer projects that allow anyone who is interested – “citizen scientists” – to look through NASA telescope data for signs of exoplanets, planets beyond our solar system.
Now, Jacobs has helped discover a giant gaseous planet about 379 light-years from Earth, orbiting a star with the same mass as the Sun.
The Jupiter-size planet is special for astronomers because its 261-day year is long compared to many known gas giants outside our solar system. The result also suggests the planet is just a bit farther from its star than Venus is from the Sun. [Read more…] about Citizen scientists spot Jupiter-like planet in Nasa telescope data
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