a exoplanet hunting adventures beyond the Milky Way. Astronomers with NASAs Chandra X-ray Observatory I have recognized what might be the first signs of a planet in another galaxy. The team noted dips in X-ray brightness, suggesting that a planet in front of a star in the galaxy 28 million light-years away is crossing Messier 51 (also known as M51). In context, all exoplanet candidates in the Milky Way are no more than 3,000 light-years from Earth – this planet would easily set a distance record if confirmed.
The nature of the stars made the feat possible. Because the researchers had to focus on dual bright X-ray systems, in which the area of the bright rays is relatively small, transit was much easier to see. Conventional detection of nearby stars requires much more sensitive light detection because a planet can only block a small amount of light from a particular star.
The planet is believed to be as large as Saturn itself, but orbiting its hosts (a star 20 times the mass of the Sun, plus a black hole or neutron star) at twice the distance.
Scientists didn’t believe the blackout was due to clouds of gas or dust, as they don’t match the event they recorded in M51. However, a planet would match the dates.
The challenge, as you can imagine, is verifying this data. The planet’s large orbit could rule out another transit for about 70 years, and it’s not exactly clear when astronomers would need to look at it. The three-hour transit of this planetary candidate did not offer a large window. This also assumes that the “living” star does not explode and bathes the planet in radiation.
However, if there is confirmation, the finding would be very significant. While there is little doubt that planets exist in other galaxies, it would be helpful to have evidence of their existence. It could also greatly expand the scope of future planetary research to include the galactic neighborhood rather than just nearby stars.
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