Alien solar systems that are home to so-called "hot Jupiters" — gas giants circling sizzlingly close to their stars — are unlikely homes for Earth-like planets, researchers say. Hot Jupiters get their ...

The Penn State-led Habitable Zone Planet Finder (HPF) provides the highest precision measurements to date of infrared signals from nearby stars. Pictured: The HPF instrument during installation in its ...

The discovery of a possible "super-Earth" less than 20 light-years from our own planet is offering scientists new hope in the hunt for other worlds that could harbor life, according to an ...

An international team, including researchers from Penn State, has unveiled the discovery of a potentially habitable "super-Earth" less than 20 light-years from our solar system, marking a significant ...