Research personnel from the University of Oviedo Asturias Institute of Space Sciences and Technologies (ICTEA) has discovered 24 new exoplanets in a study recently published in the University of Oxford Royal Astronomical Society. The work is based on the transit method; that is, a method based on measuring the tiny variations in the light emitted by a star when a planet passes in front of it from our perspective. To do this, ICTEA developed a series of techniques that made it possible to automate the process of searching for planetary signals in the data collected by NASA's Kepler space telescope. 

 

The planets in the research have very diverse properties, including the existence of hot Earths with orbital periods of only one day and that receive radiation from their star only on one of their faces, gaseous planets the size of Neptune orbiting its star 10 times closer than mercury to the Sun, etc. The study of these properties contributes to a better understanding of the possible architectures of planetary systems in the universe, as well as the processes involved in their formation. The research personnel highlight that five of the detected planets are located in the habitable zone of their respective stars; that is, they are at such a distance from their star that liquid water can exist on the planet's surface. These planets are a preferred target for the study of planetary atmospheres, which will be possible to study efficiently in the near future.