Worlds Beyond

Exoplanets

Thousands of known worlds orbiting other stars — and the hunt for a second Earth.

Three decades ago we knew of no planets outside the Solar System; today the confirmed count runs into the thousands, including rocky worlds in their stars’ habitable zones. The frontier now is atmospheres — reading starlight filtered through alien air for the chemistry of life.

Exoplanets imagery in the Gallery

Missions to Exoplanets

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James Webb Space Telescope

NASA · L2 Lagrange Point

James Webb Space Telescope

The most powerful space telescope ever built, observing the universe in infrared. Studying exoplanet atmospheres, earliest galaxies, and star formation.

Active25 Dec 2021

Learn about Exoplanets

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intermediate

Orbital Mechanics — The Mathematics of Spaceflight

Kepler's laws, escape velocity, Hohmann transfers, and the equations that guide every spacecraft ever launched.

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