News from our department

An ultra-hot Jupiter orbiting a pulsating star

The planet only needs two days to orbit its star, a pulsating gas giant. But this makes the light curve asymmetrical.

GJ 367b - reloaded

Among the exoplanets, GJ 367 b is a flyweight, but with a relatively large iron core. Measurements with JWST show further characteristics: a hot, dark planet without an air atmosphere.

First PLATO field selected

PLATO's first field of observation was selected by the Science Working Team in July 2023. It is located in the southern hemisphere, around the star Canopus, a bright star in the constellation Carina. PLATO will observe this field for at least two years, but perhaps also three or four years - depending on the yield.

Dimethyl sulphide: a sign of life on the exoplanet K2-18b?

Only marine phytoplankton produces dimethyl sulfid on Earth. Is this molcule present in the atmosphere of the planet K2-18b?

First PLATO camera installed on the optical bench

OHB in Oberpfaffenhofen is starting to integrate the PLATO cameras on the optical bench. The first of 26 cameras has now been mounted on the optical bench in the clean room of the OHB in Oberfpaffenhofen. The integration of the whole set will be ready by the end of the year.

Getting closer to the explanation of how giant planets can form around M-dwarfs

A giant planet was detected in the binary star system TOI-6383. Only a few systems like this are known. The detection of the planet and the characterization of the system will help to constrain the formation and evolution of such systems.

Flight Model of the Readout Electronics for PLATO's Fast Cameras

As PLATO's launch approaches, more and more parts of optics and electronics are being finalized. Recently, the flight models for PLATO's fast cameras which are crucial for the precise alignment of the telescope.

Astronomers are puzzled: Is WASP-43b a fast spinning planet in a slowing dance?

Tidal forces can alter the orbital parameters as a new study shows.Using new HARPS observations and a JWST full-phase light curve, we refined the orbital parameters of WASP-43b. The orbital period decreases by around 2 milliseconds per year and a rotation of the orbit could also be demonstrated, similar to the perihelion rotation of Mercury's orbit.

Barnard's Star actually hosts four planets

For more than 80 years, it has been suspected that our neighbouring star, Barnard's Arrow Star, is home to a planet. But only recently has the existence of four mini-Earths been confirmed.

Where to find the next Earth

Machine learning models can significantly advance the search for Earth-like planets. This is shown by the doctoral thesis of Jeanne Davoult from the University of Bern, who is now working at our institute.

PLATO on its way to ESTEC

How AI can help PLATO to discover exoplanets

An artificial intelligence (AI) model can be used to predict the architecture of planetary systems. This allows conclusions to be drawn about the entire system based on the first planet discovered. Language models work in a similar way, deriving the entire sentence from a few words.

CHEOPS brings in its harvest

LHS 1903 is a small red M dwarf star that is cooler and less luminous than our Sun, and is orbited by four planets. ESA's Space telescope CHEOPS has discovered the forth planet, a rocky world, in this system, which, according to the accepted architecture of the solar system, should not be there.

Treasure Map to find Habitable Planets

On February 17, 2026, the PLATO mission consortium has deliverd to ESA a catalog of the stars that PLATO will observe. It servers as a treasure map to find extrasolar planets orbiting sun-like stars in the observation field.