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What's this?

Short answer....

By measuring light drop (yeah, it's miniscule, but non the less there) when a planet transits across the face of the star, that is when the planet is directly between Earth and the parent star ; also, they measure the "wobble" of the star created by the planets gravity even though we cannot actually "see" the suspected panets

[Post edited by astrohokie at 02/22/2017 6:22PM]

(In response to this post by OXVT)

Posted: 02/22/2017 at 3:41PM

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Current Thread:

Science man .... science ... how in the heck can we see 7 planets ... -- OXVT 02/22/2017 3:35PM

By the wobble and dimming of the star. Scientists are pretty smart dudes. -- YBYSAIAHokie 02/23/2017 09:19AM

"She blined me, with, science!" -- bourbonstreet 02/22/2017 6:48PM

He's a professor of music at Johns Hopkins U ** -- MEHOKIE 02/22/2017 7:21PM

Weird -- Brown Water 02/22/2017 7:08PM

That's 80's straight FIRE right ^there^. She's a headboard snapper. ** -- bourbonstreet 02/22/2017 9:14PM

I see what you did there -- TomTurkey 02/22/2017 6:32PM

I'm going to say this bluntly... -- MP4VT2004 02/22/2017 6:16PM

Run!! Aliens!!! Oh, they're 50 Zillion miles away. check this out: -- VaAkita 02/22/2017 5:36PM

I'm just glad I can't see Uranus. ** -- Stork 02/22/2017 4:56PM

Are you afraid of all the cr@p on the surface? ** -- Guy LeDouche 02/22/2017 5:20PM

Only indirectly 'see' them ** -- FfxStationHokie 02/22/2017 3:52PM

What would Kyrie say about it? ** -- Chris Coleman

02/22/2017 3:48PM

and yet I can't currently find my keys! ** -- vt90 02/22/2017 3:47PM

Short answer.... -- astrohokie 02/22/2017 3:41PM

Pretty sure they use the light drop to ID potential stars, but... -- USN_Hokie 02/22/2017 6:41PM

Pretty sure transit is currently the best method for earth sized planets -- Manbearpig 02/22/2017 9:07PM

I got ... -- astrohokie 02/22/2017 7:41PM