Printer Friendly
The Free Library
14,651,469 articles and books
Member login
User name  
Password 
 
Join us Forgot password?

The planet that isn't.


"Too darn hot." The title of a Cole Porter Noun 1. Cole Porter - United States composer and lyricist of musical comedies (1891-1946)
Cole Albert Porter, Porter
 tune sums up why an astronomer has now retracted re·tract  
v. re·tract·ed, re·tract·ing, re·tracts

v.tr.
1. To take back; disavow: refused to retract the statement.

2.
 her 1998 claim that the faint object her team imaged with the Hubble Space Telescope Hubble Space Telescope (HST), the first large optical orbiting observatory. Built from 1978 to 1990 at a cost of $1.5 billion, the HST (named for astronomer E. P. Hubble) was expected to provide the clearest view yet obtained of the universe.  is most likely a planet. Her original announcement made front-page headlines (SN: 6/6/98, p. 357) since her observations appeared to be the first direct detection of a planet outside the solar system.

The retraction In the law of Defamation, a formal recanting of the libelous or slanderous material.

Retraction is not a defense to defamation, but under certain circumstances, it is admissible in Mitigation of Damages. Cross-references

Libel and Slander.
 comes as no surprise. SCIENCE NEWS reported last June that the astronomer, Sue Terebey of the Extrasolar ex·tra·so·lar  
adj.
Being or originating outside the solar system an extrasolar planet. 
 Research Corp. in Pasadena, Calif., presented new evidence at two meetings suggesting that the object, dubbed TMR-1C, was probably too warm to be a planet (SN: 6/26/99, p. 404).

At the time, Terebey said she would not speak to reporters until she had further analyzed spectra of TMR-1C and prepared a research article on that analysis. Now, she has done both. The spectra reveal that TMR-1C has a temperature greater than 2,700 kelvins, much hotter than any planet.

"The new data do not lend weight to the protoplanet interpretation, and the results remain consistent with the explanation that TMR-1C may be a background star," Terebey and her colleagues said in a statement posted on the Internet.
COPYRIGHT 2000 Science Service, Inc.
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2000, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

 Reader Opinion

Title:

Comment:



 

Article Details
Printer friendly Cite/link Email Feedback
Title Annotation:an object, outside the solar system, first thought to be a planet, now seems to be too hot for a planet
Author:R.C.
Publication:Science News
Article Type:Brief Article
Geographic Code:1U9CA
Date:Apr 22, 2000
Words:205
Previous Article:Observatory on a suicide mission.(Compton Gamma Ray Observatory to be directed in controlled plunge)(Brief Article)
Next Article:Now, nylon comes in killer colors.(development of antibacterial coatings for colored nylon fabrics)(Brief Article)
Topics:



Related Articles
Hubble takes first image of possible planet.(Hubble Space Telescope may have photographed planet outside the solar system)(Brief Article)
Much ado about Pluto.(research on the planet)(Brief Article)
Image of a Planet: Too Hot to be True?(purported planet observed by Hubble may be star or brown dwarf)(Brief Article)
New Planets.(Brief Article)
Captured on Camera: Are They Planets?
Astronomers spy familiar planetary system.(Brief Article)
Pluto or bust? (Astronomy).(Brief Article)
A comet's odd orbit hints at hidden planet. (Science News of the week).
Outer limits: solar system at the fringe.(Cover Story)
Pluto and the plutons.(a planet or not)

Terms of use | Copyright © 2009 Farlex, Inc. | Feedback | For webmasters | Submit articles