Discovery · 1995 CE
The First Exoplanet Around a Sun-like Star
History of Astronomy
Overview
Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz, using the ELODIE spectrograph at the Observatoire de Haute-Provence, detected the wobble of the star 51 Pegasi caused by an orbiting giant planet — the first exoplanet found around a normal, Sun-like star.
Why it matters
Opened the field of exoplanet science; recognised with the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physics.
Credit
Objects & facilities
Knowledge connections
- Discovered byMichel Mayor
- Discovered byDidier Queloz
- Part ofContemporary Astronomy
- Related to51 Pegasi b
- Related toPegasus
Sources & references
The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.
- The Nobel PrizeThe Nobel Foundation
Official record of Nobel laureates, prize motivations, and award years.
- ESOEuropean Southern Observatory
Southern-hemisphere observatory data and imagery (VLT, ALMA partner).