Scientific advancement has allowed researchers to focus on analyzing exoplanets (planets outside our solar system) now, as opposed to simply discover their existence. With the help of the new Spitzer telescope, Astronomers were able to create the very first cloud map of an exoplanet. This exoplanet is Kepler-7b, a large Jovian gas giant originally observed by Johannes Kepler himself.

The important advancement for the field comes with how the Spitzer telescope enhanced the usefulness of Kepler’s discoveries and observations. Spitzer collected infrared imagery of Kepler-7b, therefor estimating it’s temperature. It is relatively cool for being almost twice as close to it’s star than we are to ours. The planet is extremely non-dense; in fact it is less massive than water. Kepler made observations of visible light, and likely unknowingly observed the reflection of the star of orbit off the planet surface, rather than the actual planet. The clouds on the planet explained this phenomenon. Using Kepler’s data in conjunction with data gathered by Spitzer, we have the power to study the make-up and other details of extrasolar atmospheres.

This is Kepler-7b (which orbits the star in 5 Earth days):

 http://news.cnet.com/i/bto/20100104/Exoplanet.jpg

Sources:

NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory. “First cloud map of a planet beyond our solar system.”ScienceDaily, 30 Sep. 2013. Web. 1 Oct. 2013.