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# Smallest Visible Exoplanet Is Still Twice As Big As Jupiter

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<!-- video src="https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/AbHhxeYs.m3u8" -->
## Video: Smallest Visible Exoplanet Is Still Twice As Big As Jupiter

[Watch (HLS stream): Smallest Visible Exoplanet Is Still Twice As Big As Jupiter](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/AbHhxeYs.m3u8) (1:08)

![Smallest Visible Exoplanet Is Still Twice As Big As Jupiter](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/AbHhxeYs/poster.jpg?width=720)

_Published 2015-08-14. 51 Eridani b is the smallest exoplanet we’ve ever obtained direct images of, and could help explain how star systems form their attendant planets._


---

Jul 27, 2023 6:40 PM UTC

---

## More From This Series

[All Videos](https://time.com/video/)

[Reading Exoplanet Atmospheres](/video/e9dIRJOK/)

### Reading Exoplanet Atmospheres

[Jupiter Will Appear its Biggest, Brightest, and Most Visible Next Week. This Is the Best Way to See It](/video/e4TTaohe/)

### Jupiter Will Appear its Biggest, Brightest, and Most Visible Next Week. This Is the Best Way to See It

[How Telescopes Detect Exoplanets](/video/mcUahEWN/)

### How Telescopes Detect Exoplanets

---


## Transcript

Exoplanet 51 Eridani b had just set a record. It's the smallest planet we've managed to take a direct image of despite being twice the size of Jupiter. To find 51 Eridani b, scientists used the Gemini Planet Imager to look at the planet's infrared emission. This is no small task, given the distances involved, the interference from our own atmosphere, and the fact the planet is a million times dimmer than its star. As one of the researchers put it to The Washington Post, " You're basically looking for a firefly that's really close to a flood lamp, standing about a mile away and looking through a glass of water ." We've found most of the Planets we know about with NASA's Kepler telescope.

It searches for the shadows an orbiting planet creates in front of its host star. Having direct photographic evidence of 51 Eridani b will help researchers learn more about the formation of both the planet and the System as a whole than they might with Kepler. Lead researcher Bruce Macintosh says " How all the weird systems we see and Kepler sees got to be there is the biggest exoplanet question right now, and everything we can do to understand it is critical ." The researchers have published their findings in the journal Science.

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