Moroccan Researchers Contribute To Discovery of 3 Exoplanets
Researchers from the Oukaimeden Observatory at Cadi Ayyad University, as well as an international team of astronomers, have contributed to the discovery of three exoplanets orbiting a star about 400 light years away from the solar system.
The discovery was announced by NASA on Friday, February 12th, 2021
Researchers from the Oukaimeden Observatory at Cadi Ayyad University, as well as an international team of astronomers, have contributed to the discovery of three exoplanets orbiting a star about 400 light years away from the solar system.
This solar system is characterized by the presence of three planets and the asteroid belt in addition to two other stars orbiting a young star called TOI 451. The size of these planets varies between the size of Earth and that of Neptune.
Data and observations of this solar system have been collected using a group of space and terrestrial telescopes since 2009. This discovery was announced by an international team of astronomers, including two Moroccans; Dr. Zuhair Benkhaldoun, Director of the Observatory for Astronomy (Oukaimeden), and one of his PhD students Abdrahman Sebki.
These planets, which are only 120 million years old, will provide an important opportunity for researchers to study them as they are still in their early stages of development, helping scientists to understand the formation and evolution of our solar system.