Cosmic magnifying glass; Distant star reveals planet.

0 Comments | M2 Presswire, April, 2004

M2 PRESSWIRE-16 April 2004-NSF: Cosmic magnifying glass; Distant star reveals planet(C)1994-2004 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD RDATE:04142004 ARLINGTON, Va.-Like Sherlock Holmes holding a magnifying glass to unveil hidden clues, modern day astronomers used cosmic magnifying effects to reveal a planet orbiting a distant star.

This marks the first discovery of a planet around a star beyond Earth's solar system using gravitational microlensing. A star or planet can act as a cosmic lens to magnify and brighten a more distant star lined up behind it. The gravitational field of the foreground star bends and focuses light, like a glass lens bending and focusing starlight in a telescope. Albert Einstein predicted this effect in his theory of general relativity and...

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