The winning Indian names are
| Bibhā (बिभा, বিভা) Ananyo Bhattacharya, Surat |
Bibhā [/bɪbɦa/] is the Bengali pronunciation of the Sanskrit word Vibha, which means “a bright beam of light”. It also honours Indian physicist Dr. Bibha Chowdhuri. |
| Santamasa (संतमस) Vidyasagar Daud, Pune |
Santamasa [/səntəməs/] in Sanskrit means “clouded”, which is analogous to the nature of the exoplanet’s atmosphere. |
The naming theme for exoplanet and host star is an analogy to how the physical & lighting conditions of the HD 86081 system might be.
Dr. Bibha Chowdhuri
The National Commitee unanimously believes that this star name, with this particular spelling of it, is of importance to highlight women's contribution in the Indian science community. It honours the unsung Indian physicist Dr. Bibha Chowdhuri (1913-1991), whose exceptional research on elementary particle physics and cosmic rays constitutes some of the most pioneering work in Indian science.She discovered a new subatomic particle, the pi-meson, from experiments in Darjeeling, with her mentor D.M. Bose, and published her results in Nature, but did not get due recognition. She had also assisted the Nobel-winning physicist Prof. Patrick Blackett during her doctoral studies in the 1940s. The committee is pleased at this pair being clearly voted as a winning one and highly favours its use for this unique celestial system.
An exoplanet discovery just won a Nobel Prize!
What is an Exoplanet?
Our solar system has eight planets and many other bodies revolving around the Sun. Such systems exist around other stars too. Astronomers call planets that orbit around other stars extrasolar planets or "exoplanets".
How do we discover Exoplanets?
Exoplanets are very difficult to find around their parent stars. They are hidden by the bright glare of the stars they orbit. They do not have light of their own and may not reflect enough light to be detected. Towards the end of the twentieth century, observations through space and other telescopes, along with smart usage of image processing opened the way to discovery of exoplanets.
Astronomers use different methods to detect and study these distant bodies. Exoplanets are predominantly detected by the dip in the light of their star which they eclipse, or by looking at the small wobble of the host star due to the exoplanet. A few have been found by direct imaging. HD86081 b was found by the wobble of its host star. Future large telescopes such as the Thirty Meter Telescope etc., with advanced technologies like adaptive optics, should be able to discover many more such worlds directly.
The HD 86081 Planetary System
Location of this system in the sky:
| R.A. 09h 56m 05.92s |
Dec. -03° 48" 30.3" |
Click this link to see it on Wikisky.