Comments on: Reporter's Notes: Exoplanets http://science.kqed.org/quest/2008/05/30/reporters-notes-exoplanets/ Explore science, nature and environment stories from Northern California and beyond with KQED’s multimedia series Fri, 10 Feb 2012 05:38:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Steven Nelson http://science.kqed.org/quest/2008/05/30/reporters-notes-exoplanets/#comment-11432 Steven Nelson Fri, 13 Feb 2009 00:38:30 +0000 http://www.kqed.org/quest/blog/?p=623#comment-11432 Quest is No. CA-centric so the emphasis on the Lick work is understandable. The nationalism in "found a planet" goes as far back as Neptune! That time it was France and Britain. The Swiss efforts are well recorded and well understood in the scientific and amateur astronomy circles. Trefil, "Other Worlds" (and NPR science advisor), gives appropriate credit. Swiss indeed provided the kick for the No. CA groups to publish their confirming and new planet findings. The IAU definitions are also clear - Ceres is now again a 'planet' although a "dwarf planet" after being demoted in the late 1800's to an asteroid. Pluto is now demoted to "dwarf planet". And those big ice-balls past Pluto? TNOs? -Berkeley Astronomy Dept. alumni, former Lick staff, and college friend of a planet finder- Quest is No. CA-centric so the emphasis on the Lick work is understandable. The nationalism in "found a planet" goes as far back as Neptune! That time it was France and Britain.

The Swiss efforts are well recorded and well understood in the scientific and amateur astronomy circles. Trefil, "Other Worlds" (and NPR science advisor), gives appropriate credit. Swiss indeed provided the kick for the No. CA groups to publish their confirming and new planet findings.

The IAU definitions are also clear – Ceres is now again a 'planet' although a "dwarf planet" after being demoted in the late 1800's to an asteroid. Pluto is now demoted to "dwarf planet". And those big ice-balls past Pluto? TNOs?

-Berkeley Astronomy Dept. alumni, former Lick staff, and college friend of a planet finder-

]]> By: Vermillion http://science.kqed.org/quest/2008/05/30/reporters-notes-exoplanets/#comment-11433 Vermillion Mon, 29 Dec 2008 17:16:29 +0000 http://www.kqed.org/quest/blog/?p=623#comment-11433 The radio report on extrasolar planets has several errors. The report made it sound as though Bay Area astronomers discovered the first extrasolar planets. They did not. The first extrasolar planets were discovered in 1991, not 1995, and the discovery was made by two astronomers outside California: Alex Wolszczan and Dale Frail. They found two planets in 1991 around a pulsar named PSR B1257+12. A third planet was found around this pulsar in 1993. This work is thoroughly and colorfully documented in Ken Croswell's extrasolar planet book Planet Quest. Wolszczan and Frail published their work in Nature, volume 355, page 145. Second, the first extrasolar planet discovered around a star like the Sun was found by Swiss astronomers Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz, who are also far beyond California. Their story is again told in Croswell's book, and their paper appears in Nature, volume 378, page 355. There was a brief mention of Switzerland in the radio report, but no one listening would have guessed the Swiss actually came first with regard to the discovery of an extrasolar planet around a Sunlike star. And the introduction to the report, about Pluto, was misleading. Contrary to media reports, astronomers have reached no consensus about Pluto's planetary status. A few months ago a conference was held on the definition of a planet. The upshot: "Scientists Debate Planet Definition and Agree to Disagree." Google that sentence and you'll see a report expressing various opinions about Pluto. The radio report on extrasolar planets has several errors.

The report made it sound as though Bay Area astronomers discovered the first extrasolar planets. They did not.

The first extrasolar planets were discovered in 1991, not 1995, and the discovery was made by two astronomers outside California: Alex Wolszczan and Dale Frail. They found two planets in 1991 around a pulsar named PSR B1257+12. A third planet was found around this pulsar in 1993. This work is thoroughly and colorfully documented in Ken Croswell's extrasolar planet book Planet Quest. Wolszczan and Frail published their work in Nature, volume 355, page 145.

Second, the first extrasolar planet discovered around a star like the Sun was found by Swiss astronomers Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz, who are also far beyond California. Their story is again told in Croswell's book, and their paper appears in Nature, volume 378, page 355.

There was a brief mention of Switzerland in the radio report, but no one listening would have guessed the Swiss actually came first with regard to the discovery of an extrasolar planet around a Sunlike star.

And the introduction to the report, about Pluto, was misleading. Contrary to media reports, astronomers have reached no consensus about Pluto's planetary status. A few months ago a conference was held on the definition of a planet. The upshot: "Scientists Debate Planet Definition and Agree to Disagree." Google that sentence and you'll see a report expressing various opinions about Pluto.

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