Out of hundreds of candidate planetary systems, scientists had previously verified six systems with multiple transiting planets. Now, Kepler observations have verified planets in 11 new planetary systems. Many of these systems contain additional planet candidates that are yet to be verified.
See also papers II , III & IV that led up to this paper.
Press Coverage NASA mission piles on the planets: MSNBC, January 26, 2012 [w/ video] NASA's Keplar Spacecraft Finds 11 New Solar Systems, 26 Planets: Mashable, January 27, 2012 [video] Planet-hunting space telescope nets jackpot: January 27, 2012 Kepler uncovers planetary menagerie: Nature News Blog, Janary 27, 2012 La nave Kepler descubre 26 nuevos planetas orbitando en torno a 11 estrellas: El Munod, January 27, 2012 (spanish) NASA Telescope Discovers 26 Alien Planets Around 11 Different Stars: Space.
Zooming in on Fomalhaut This video sequence starts with a wide-field view of the sky around the star Fomalhaut in the constellation of Piscis Austrinus (The Southern Fish). Fomalhaut is the brightest star in the constellation and one of the brightest stars known to have an orbiting planet. It lies about 25 light-years from the Earth and is surrounded by a huge disc of dust. The final view of this video shows a new ALMA image of the disc (orange) and the new results from ALMA have given astronomers a major breakthrough in understanding a nearby planetary system and provided valuable clues about how such systems form and evolve.
Planets in Systems from NASA’s Kepler Mission The image above depicts multiple planet systems discovered by NASA’s Kepler mission and confirmed by transit timing variations (as of January 2012). Out of hundreds of candidate planetary systems, scientists had previously verified six systems with multiple transiting planets (denoted here in red). Now, Kepler observations have verified planets (shown here in green) in 11 new planetary systems. Many of these systems contain additional planet candidates that are yet to be verified (shown here in dark purple).
Planets in Systems from NASA’s Kepler Mission The image above depicts multiple planet systems discovered by NASA’s Kepler mission and confirmed by transit timing variations (as of January 2012). Out of hundreds of candidate planetary systems, scientists had previously verified six systems with multiple transiting planets (denoted here in red). Now, Kepler observations have verified planets (shown here in green) in 11 new planetary systems. Many of these systems contain additional planet candidates that are yet to be verified (shown here in dark purple).
When an exoplanet transits across the face of its host star atoms and gases in its atmosphere absorb some of the starlight at specific wavelengths. These absorption wavelengths form a unique fingerprint, allowing researchers to identify the presence of Potassium.
Press Coverage Hidden Worlds: Astronomers Find Invisible Planet 650 Light-Years Away: Time, September 9, 2011. Astronomers Discover 'Invisible' Planet With New Technique: International Business Times, September 9, 2011. Transit planet search reveals doubly-tilted solar sytem: USA Today, September 9, 2011. NASA's Kepler spacecraft finds "invisible world": Digital Journal.com, September 8, 2011. "Invisible" planet discovered with new technique: Kepler probe detects alien world by its gravitational influence on a neighbor: MSNBC.