Smallest Alien Planet Kepler-37b Explained (Infographic)

[n2doc]

http://www.space.com/19858-smallest-alien-planet-kepler-37b-infographic.html

[eppur_se_muova]

2. More on Kepler 37b ...

Exoplanet Kepler 37b is tiniest yet - smaller than MercuryBy Jason Palmer

Science and technology reporter, BBC News

Astronomers have smashed the record for the smallest planet beyond our Solar System - finding one only slightly larger than our Moon.

To spot the tiny, probably rocky planet, they first needed to precisely measure the size of its host star.

They did so using "astroseismology" - effectively, turning tiny variations in the star's light into sounds.

A report in Nature describes the blistering, probably rocky planet, which orbits its star in just 13 days.

It is joined in this far-flung solar system by two other planets, one three-quarters Earth's size and one twice as large as Earth.
***
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21471908