14/11/2012 17:42
Free-floating planet has been observed
A Jupiter-class planet that orbits no star, but is free-floating in space has been directly observed. The phenomenon is believed to be common, but is very difficult to detect.
Astronomers were on the hunt for so-called brown dwarf stars, sometimes referred to as "failed stars" since they grow like stars from collapsing balls of gas and dust, but aren't massive enough to get thermonuclear reactions started in their cores.
But when CFBDSIR2149, located about 130 light-years from Earth, came into view, scientists suspected they had nabbed something else.