Anyhow my question is, as far as I'm aware, one of the methods of detecting exoplanets is keeping a look out and detecting the moment when a star's light is blocked/distorted, and concluding that there's a planet there. But doesn't this mean we can only detect planets that are placed at a certain angle relative to the earth? If we're 'above' or below the orbit which the planet revolves around, the star's light wouldn't get blocked for us, would it?
And a second question is that, do you think the usage of (possibly nano) space probes will ever be considered as an additional method of exoplanet discovery? And if so, how do you guys plan to keep the communications/fuel steady for duration of the travel?
Airyanem-Vaejah60 karma
Hey guys, shout out from Iran, much love!
Anyhow my question is, as far as I'm aware, one of the methods of detecting exoplanets is keeping a look out and detecting the moment when a star's light is blocked/distorted, and concluding that there's a planet there. But doesn't this mean we can only detect planets that are placed at a certain angle relative to the earth? If we're 'above' or below the orbit which the planet revolves around, the star's light wouldn't get blocked for us, would it?
And a second question is that, do you think the usage of (possibly nano) space probes will ever be considered as an additional method of exoplanet discovery? And if so, how do you guys plan to keep the communications/fuel steady for duration of the travel?
View HistoryShare Link