            APOD: 2017 December 18 - The Kepler 90 Planetary System

                         Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! [1] Each day a different image or photograph of our
 fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a
                           professional astronomer.

                               2017 December 18
                                      [2]
                        The Kepler-90 Planetary System
              Illustration Credit: NASA Ames [3] , Wendy Stenzel

Explanation: Do other stars have planetary systems like our own? Yes -- one
such system is Kepler-90 [4] . Cataloged by the orbiting Kepler satellite [5]
, an eighth planet [6]  has now been discovered giving Kepler-90 the same
number of known planets as our Solar System. Similarities between Kepler-90
and our system include a G-type star [7]  comparable to our Sun, rocky planets
comparable to our Earth, and large planets comparable in size to Jupiter [8]
and Saturn [9] . Differences include that all of the known Kepler-90 [10]
planets orbit relatively close in -- closer than Earth's orbit around the Sun
-- making them possibly too hot to harbor life. However, observations over
longer time periods may discover cooler planets [11]  further out. Kepler-90
[12]  lies about 2,500 light years away, and at magnitude 14 is visible with a
medium-sized telescope toward the constellation of the Dragon (Draco [13] ).
Exoplanet-finding missions [14]  planned for launch in the next decade include
TESS [15] , JWST [16] , WFIRST [17] , and PLATO [18] .

                  Tomorrow's picture: spiral north pole [19]

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    Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff [31] (MTU [32] ) & Jerry Bonnell [33]
                                  (UMCP [34] )
          NASA Official:  Phillip Newman Specific rights apply [35] .
              NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices [36]
              A service of: ASD [37]  at NASA [38]  / GSFC [39]
                           & Michigan Tech. U. [40]
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Site notes:
  [1] archivepix.html
  [2] image/1712/Kepler90Illustration_Kepler_1820.jpg
  [3] https://www.nasa.gov/ames
  [4] https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/spaceimages/details.php?id=PIA22193
  [5] https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/kepler/spacecraft/index.html
  [6] https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2017-321
  [7] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G-type_main-sequence_star
  [8] ap170523.html
  [9] ap170911.html
  [10] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uzv-tEa7SI
  [11]
https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4WbbTXMQyrc/TYrKOKNZZBI/AAAAAAACB50/wqhFnRgAIIo/
s400/boo_Pomeranian_Dog_19.jpg
  [12] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler-90
  [13] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Draco_(constellation)
  [14] http://www.searchforlife.net/exoplanet-missions/
  [15] https://tess.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  [16] ap160509.html
  [17] https://wfirst.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  [18] http://sci.esa.int/plato/42278-mission-concept/
  [19] ap171219.html
  [20] ap171217.html
  [21] archivepix.html
  [22] lib/apsubmit2015.html
  [23] lib/aptree.html
  [24] https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  [25] calendar/allyears.html
  [26] /apod.rss
  [27] lib/edlinks.html
  [28] lib/about_apod.html
  [29] http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=171218
  [30] ap171219.html
  [31] http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  [32] http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  [33] https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  [34] http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  [35] lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  [36] https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  [37] https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  [38] https://www.nasa.gov/
  [39] https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  [40] http://www.mtu.edu/
