Qatar- Three observation units for new planets
Date
6/28/2016 6:30:42 AM
(MENAFN- The Peninsula) FROM LEFT: Dr Dimitris Mislis, Dr Khalid A Al Subai, Dr Stylianos Pyrzas and Hani Dalee, during a press conference by Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute at Education City yesterday. Pic: Kammutty VP/The Peninsula
By Fazeena Saleem
DOHA: Three new observation units are being set up by Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute (QEERI) to further study the new extra solar planets (exoplanets) discovered recently, said a senior official yesterday.
The new units will be stationed at the existing observation stations in New Mexico, Canary islands and China.
“We have already set up the units in New Mexico and Canary Islands, we will have a observation unit in China after three weeks, and these will lead us to more discoveries,” said Dr Khalid A Al Subai, the team lead, as well as QEERI’s Acting Executive Director, at a press conference yesterday.
The new exoplanets were found by using optical Earth-based telescopes and named as Qatar-3b, Qatar-4b and Qatar-5b, following an agreement with the International Astronomical Union (IAU).
The research was supported by Qatar Foundation as part of the ongoing Qatar Exoplanet Survey (QES).
“These are not the first planets we have discovered. We have made discoveries in 2000 and 20011. In 2011, we received funding from Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF)to build three observing stations across the globe in Mexico, Canary Islands and China. We continuously observe thousands of stars and produce huge amount of data that is being analysed and processed in Qatar,” said Dr Al Subai. “We are the first team in an Arabic and Islamic country to discover new planets.”
“This adds Qatar’s name to the modern astronomical landscape. Internationally we are adding more data to find about our solar system which is a big puzzle. Although one discovery cannot answer the puzzle, our findings will contribute to solving the puzzle,” he added.
Exoplanets are planets orbiting around other stars, outside of the Earth’s solar system. The three newly discovered exoplanets belong to a category astronomers call ‘hot Jupiters.’ They have sizes between one and one- and-half times that of Jupiter (12 to 17 times larger than the Earth).
“We call them hot Jupiter, which are gas planets composed mainly of hydrogen and helium. Qatar 3 and Qatar 5 have the same size of Jupiter. Qatar 4 is almost one and half size of the Jupiter,” said Dr Al Subai.
Hot Jupiters are located very close to their host star and, due to this proximity, have temperatures that range between 1200 and 3000 degrees Celsius.
“The three planets are so close to the host star and so all these planets are facing the same area of the host star, that means one side of the planet is always having day time and the other side always having night time. And also the high temperature makes the life there almost impossible,” said Dr Dimitris Mislis, a scientist at QEERI and member of the team which discovered new planets.
The Peninsula