See other posts from January 2011
Grab bag: "Rocky" exoplanet, molten lunar core, Rhea close encounter
Posted By Emily Lakdawalla
2011/01/10 02:12 CST
Topics:
I'm having a tough time getting moving today so please excuse a linky post on Kepler's "rocky" exoplanet discovery, the Moon's core, and Cassini's upcoming Rhea flyby
The Kepler exoplanet hunting mission has made news today with a report of "its first rocky planet." However, as the Bad Astronomer explains, while "rocky" is an accurate description of its composition, this thing is so close to its star and so hot that it's probably quite molten. The search for a truly Earth-like planet is not over!
EDIT: It's also well worth reading Franck Marchis' take on the announcement.

NASA / Kepler Mission / Dana Berry
Planet Kepler-10b Transiting Its Host Star (Artist's Depiction)
Measuring 1.4 times the size of Earth, Kepler-10b is the smallest planet ever discovered outside our solar system. Kepler-10b is of a rocky planet with a mass 4.6 times that of Earth and with an average density of 8.8 grams per cubic centimeter (which is significantly denser than Earth's 5.5).Cassini has its third close flyby of Rhea in about 8 hours, at an altitude of only 69 kilometers. There's the usual preview on the JPL website, and detail on the imaging plans by Jason Perry over at CICLOPS.
Blog Search
Support our Asteroid Hunters
They are Watching the Skies for You!
Our researchers, worldwide, do absolutely critical work.
Asteroid 2012DA14 was a close one.
It missed us. But there are more out there.



















Comments:
Leave a Comment:
You must be logged in to submit a comment. Log in now.