Author Archives: Paul M Robertson

HPF Confirms the First Exoplanet Discoveries from Gaia Astrometry

Posted on February 4, 2025 by Paul M Robertson

Introduction: Discovering Exoplanets with Gaia Gaia is a spacecraft dedicated to making ultra-precise measurements of the positions and on-sky motions of billions of stars.  The technical name for this measurement is astrometry, and the astrometric data collected by Gaia is invaluable … Continue reading →

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HPF Discovers a Giant Exoplanet in a Highly Disturbed Orbit

Posted on July 17, 2024 by Paul M Robertson

A video showing the extreme orbit of TIC 241249530b.  As the planet makes its closest approach to the star, it becomes brighter due to the increase in incident stellar radiation.  Video credit: Abigail Minnich, Penn State University Today, the HPF … Continue reading →

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HPF Discovers a Close-In Neptune Orbiting a Very Low-Mass Star

Posted on November 30, 2023 by Paul M Robertson

Artist’s rendering of the Neptune-mass exoplanet orbiting the very low-mass star LHS 3154.  Video Credit: Abigail Minnich Introduction As the name implies, the Habitable-zone Planet Finder was designed primarily to search for Earthlike planets orbiting nearby stars.  Its sensitivity to … Continue reading →

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