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First ‘Exomoon’ strange signals beyond the Solar System

Astronomers have detected signals coming from an object beyond our solar system which they believe could be the first ‘exomoon’.

While more than 3,000 exoplanets – worlds orbiting stars other than the sun – have been found, moons outside ours solar system have not be discovered.

The object, dubbed Kepler-1625b I, is likely to be around the size and weight of Neptune and circles a planet that is the same size as Jupiter, around 4,000 light years away. 

The signal was first picked up by Nasa’s Kepler Space Telescope and the Hubble Telescope will carry out further observations in October.

Launched in 2009, Kepler is a space observatory launched by Nasa to discover Earth-size planets orbiting other stars. 

The telescope picks up planets by looking for dips in the brightness of the stars when a planet passes in front of them.

To find exomoons, they search for a dip in light before and after the planet passes in front of the star.

 

 

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