Bookmark and Share

Advanced press release search

Subscribe to esonews mailing list.
Search results for ‘releases with Facility used matching 'TRAnsiting Planets and PlanetesImals Small Telescope'.’

eso1246 — Science Release

Dwarf Planet Makemake Lacks Atmosphere — Distant frigid world reveals its secrets for the first time

21 November 2012: Astronomers have used three telescopes at ESO’s observatories in Chile to observe the dwarf planet Makemake as it drifted in front of a distant star and blocked its light. The new observations have allowed them to check for the first time whether Makemake is surrounded by an atmosphere. This chilly world has an orbit lying in the outer Solar System and was expected to have an atmosphere like Pluto (eso0908), but this is now shown not to be the case. The scientists also measured Makemake’s density for the first time. The new results are to be published in the 22 November issue of the journal Nature.
Read more
eso1142 — Science Release

Faraway Eris is Pluto's Twin — Dwarf planet sized up accurately as it blocks light of faint star

26 October 2011: Astronomers have accurately measured the diameter of the faraway dwarf planet Eris for the first time by catching it as it passed in front of a faint star. This event was seen at the end of 2010 by telescopes in Chile, including the Belgian TRAPPIST telescope at ESO’s La Silla Observatory. The observations show that Eris is an almost perfect twin of Pluto in size. Eris appears to have a very reflective surface, suggesting that it is uniformly covered in a thin layer of ice, probably a frozen atmosphere. The results will be published in the 27 October 2011 issue of the journal Nature.
Read more
eso1023 — Organisation Release

New National Telescope at La Silla — TRAPPIST to Scout the Sky and Uncover Exoplanets and Comets

8 June 2010: A new robotic telescope has had first light at ESO’s La Silla Observatory, in Chile. TRAPPIST (TRAnsiting Planets and PlanetesImals Small Telescope) is devoted to the study of planetary systems through two approaches: the detection and characterisation of planets located outside the Solar System (exoplanets) and the study of comets orbiting around the Sun. The 60-cm telescope is operated from a control room in Liège, Belgium, 12 000 km away.
Read more
  1  
Showing 1 to 3 of 3


Usage of ESO Images and Videos

Also see our