Sarah Goggin, Sophomore
Wolf Cukier, a 17 year-old intern at a NASA Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, discovered a new planet while studying star brightness. While looking at a system 1,300 lightyears away from Earth, Cukier noticed a small area of darkness in one of the suns. When he got the chance to look over it with his mentors, they spent weeks trying to confirm that this was actually a planet. 📷
Roughly 6.9 times the size of our Earth, this newly discovered planet orbits two stars within its system. This makes it slightly harder to detect, as in order for it to be seen one of the stars must diminish in brightness. This is the first planet of its kind to be discovered by the TESS Program.
Cukier and his mentors are hoping to publish a scientific journal about their discovery. Their findings were also shown at the American Astronomical Society meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii, having been featured in a panel. Cukier is planning to continue his research into astrology, and will keep in touch with is NASA mentors.
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