In an exciting twist straight out of a science fiction novel, a teenager from New York has made a groundbreaking discovery while interning at NASA. Seventeen-year-old Jamie Lee, a senior in high school, stumbled upon an entire planet while analyzing data at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
During his internship, Jamie was tasked with examining star brightness data as part of the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission. While scrutinizing the information, he noticed a peculiar dimming in one of the stars within a distant system located 1,300 light-years away. This dimming wasn’t just a fluke; it turned out to be a planet 6.9 times larger than Earth that orbits not one but two stars—a phenomenon known as a circumbinary planet.
“I was reviewing the data flagged by other volunteers that indicated a system where two stars eclipse each other from our perspective,” Jamie explained in a NASA press release. “Just three days into my internship, I detected a signal from TOI 1338. Initially, I thought it was a stellar eclipse, but the timing didn’t add up. I realized I was looking at a planet.”
Dubbed TOI 1338 b, this newly discovered planet is the first circumbinary world identified by TESS. Detecting circumbinary planets is particularly challenging because they revolve around two stars instead of one, like Earth does. The process involves observing transits, which occur when a planet passes in front of a star, causing a decrease in brightness—something TESS’s cameras can capture, especially when the larger star is involved.
Interestingly, even with NASA’s advanced technology, human observation proved crucial. Research scientist Alex Martinez from the SETI Institute noted, “These signals can confuse algorithms, but the human eye excels at spotting patterns, especially irregular ones like those in transit data.” Jamie initially mistook the dimming for a star passing in front of another, but he quickly realized he was witnessing a planetary discovery.
Looking to the future, Jamie plans to pursue further studies in astronomy and continues to collaborate with his mentors at NASA. If you’re interested in learning more about home insemination, check out this fascinating blog post that dives deeper into the subject. For those seeking expert advice, Make a Mom provides valuable insights into at-home insemination kits, and the Mayo Clinic offers excellent resources on various pregnancy and home insemination topics.
In summary, Jamie Lee’s remarkable discovery of TOI 1338 b highlights the potential of young minds in the field of astronomy and reminds us that sometimes, human intuition can surpass technology.
Keyphrase: Teen discovers new planet
Tags: [“home insemination kit”, “home insemination syringe”, “self insemination”]