American astronomers have found signs of a planet in the Messier 51 galaxy. If the results are confirmed, it will be the first planet discovered outside our galaxy.
The discovery was made by a group of astronomers from the Cambridge Astrophysical Center in the United States. Scientists used the Chandra orbiting X-ray telescope and the so-called transit technique, which is used to search for planets in the Milky Way. According to their estimates, the supposed planet the size of Saturn is located from the center of its system at a distance twice the distance from Saturn to the Sun.
Scientists confirm the discovery
Astronomers admit that more data is needed to confirm their discovery. It is possible that the alleged planet is actually a cloud of cosmic gas and dust. Due to the very large orbit of the newly discovered object, it will be difficult to verify the find. Scientists have to wait 70 years for the object to fly into the orbit of its system.
At the moment, astronomers have discovered about 5,000 planets. However, they are all in our galaxy – the Milky Way.