Uploaded January 2023 | Updated September 2026, 21 minutes ago
Until recently, the only planetary system we could study was our own Solar System. Now astronomers have found evidence for thousands of planets around stars other than our own Sun. These are known as exoplanets. Because of this we are getting closer to answering key questions such as: Is Earth unique? Do other planetary systems similar to ours exist? Are we alone in the Universe?
Thanks to its powerful capabilities at infrared wavelengths, the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope will offer a unique view of the outer planets in our own magnificent Solar System
Watch this special Space Sparks episode to learn how Webb will study exoplanets.
Credit:
Directed by: Bethany Downer and Nico Bartmann
Editing: Nico Bartmann
Web and technical support: Enciso Systems
Written by: Owen Higgins
Narration: Sara Mendes de Costa
Music: tonelabs - Happy Hubble (http://www.tonelabs.com), tonelabs - The Red North (http://www.tonelabs.com), and Stellardrone - Stardome
Footage and photos: ESA/Hubble, ESA/Webb, ESA, NASA, CSA, STScI, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Conceptual Image Lab, Northrup Grumman, M. Kornmesser, J. Olmsted (STScI), ESO, L. Calçada, Solar Dynamics Observatory, L. Hustak, A Carter (UCSC), the ERS 1386 team, A. Pagan (STScI), A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley), JPL, Caltech, spaceengine.org
Until recently, the only planetary system we could study was our own Solar System. Now astronomers have found evidence for thousands of planets around stars other than our own Sun. These are known as exoplanets. Because of this we are getting closer to answering key questions such as: Is Earth unique? Do other planetary systems similar to ours exist? Are we alone in the Universe?
Thanks to its powerful capabilities at infrared wavelengths, the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope will offer a unique view of the outer planets in our own magnificent Solar System
Watch this special Space Sparks episode to learn how Webb will study exoplanets.
Credit:
Directed by: Bethany Downer and Nico Bartmann
Editing: Nico Bartmann
Web and technical support: Enciso Systems
Written by: Owen Higgins
Narration: Sara Mendes de Costa
Music: tonelabs - Happy Hubble (http://www.tonelabs.com), tonelabs - The Red North (http://www.tonelabs.com), and Stellardrone - Stardome
Footage and photos: ESA/Hubble, ESA/Webb, ESA, NASA, CSA, STScI, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Conceptual Image Lab, Northrup Grumman, M. Kornmesser, J. Olmsted (STScI), ESO, L. Calçada, Solar Dynamics Observatory, L. Hustak, A Carter (UCSC), the ERS 1386 team, A. Pagan (STScI), A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley), JPL, Caltech, spaceengine.org
