Alien Planets

The James Webb Space Telescope has for the first time peered inside a planet-forming disk of dust surrounding a nearby star, a development promising to supercharge the search for exoplanets.

An international team of scientists has found a huge new alien world that's on the boundary between planet and "failed star."

A new search for alien signals focuses on planetary transits, when exoplanets pass right in front of their suns.

You can help NASA discover new planets using your personal telescope or even just your smartphone.

NASA's latest flagship telescope is still in its first year of science, but the agency isn't only hard at work building its successor — it's starting to plan that next mission's successor as well.

Researchers may be able to explain the origin of these enigmatic worlds and also that of other rocky planets and moons, including Earth and its siblings.

The historic James Webb Space Telescope has confirmed its first rocky exoplanet, 41 light-years from Earth.

NASA's leading planet-hunting spacecraft has spotted its second planet that matches Earth's size and may be able to retain liquid water — and both worlds orbit the same star.

A newly discovered hot Jupiter exoplanet located 530 light years from Earth experiences a new year every five days and has a blisteringly hot surface temperature of around 2240 degrees Fahrenheit.

A special type of supernova might be able to destroy a planet's ozone layer years after the initial explosion.

The James Webb Space Telescope is imaging the universe in unprecedented detail. Stunning photos showcase the observatory's pioneering work in deep space.

From investigating UFOs over Earth to using the most powerful telescope ever devised to peer into the atmosphere of alien worlds, 2022 has been a banner year in the search for extraterrestrial life.

A non-descript star, TRAPPIST-1, is host to seven Earth-size planets and the James Webb Space Telescope is giving astronomers a thrilling new view of these worlds.

Astronomers have discovered two Earth-like exoplanets orbiting a red dwarf near our solar system that orbit their star with respective 'years' lasting just 10 and 21 days.

Tidal interactions are pulling the exoplanet toward its demise: a fiery collision with its star.

Two planets found by NASA's retired Kepler Space Telescope may be made mostly of water, according to new research.

The super-Earth exoplanet Janssen is so close to its star, a year is only 18 hours long.

Astronomers have found a way to catch planet-murdering stars red-handed and figured out how long we have until the case grows cold.

A weird planet with the diameter of Jupiter but eight times its mass has left astronomers questioning current theories about planet formation.