We now know of over 1,000 planets orbiting other stars. These extraordinary systems come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, like planets as big as Jupiter that orbit their stars in just 3 days or an entire solar system worth of planets squeezed inside Mercury’s orbit! Each planet detection technique offers a unique window into the myriad planetary systems in our universe. I will discuss the techniques astronomers use to discover planets and my favorite planetary systems in comparison to our own solar system.
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