Euclid Captures 60 Million Milky Way Stars, Opening Path to 100,000 Exoplanets
Updated
Updated · Good News Network · Jul 1
Euclid Captures 60 Million Milky Way Stars, Opening Path to 100,000 Exoplanets
3 articles · Updated · Good News Network · Jul 1
Summary
Nine visible-light images taken over 26 hours at the Milky Way’s center resolved about 60 million stars in a sky patch roughly the size of a full moon.
Euclid was built to study dark matter and dark energy, but its wide-field camera also makes it unusually effective at finding planets through microlensing—brief brightening caused when a star and its planet bend background light.
Eamonn Kerins said the dataset could launch a new phase of exoplanet hunting, expanding the known tally from about 6,000 to more than 100,000 candidates across the galaxy.
Orbiting about 1 million miles from Earth at the second Lagrange point, Euclid can flag targets for closer follow-up by telescopes such as James Webb and Hubble.
How will two telescopes team up to find the galaxy's hidden rogue planets and isolated black holes?
With its surprise success finding planets, will Euclid's main mission to study dark matter now be deprioritized?
Could life thrive on trillions of sunless rogue planets, wandering the cold, dark space between stars?
Mapping 60 Million Stars: How Euclid’s Record-Breaking Milky Way Image Revolutionizes Exoplanet Science
Overview
The European Space Agency’s Euclid space telescope, originally built to study dark matter and dark energy, captured the largest and most detailed visible-light image of the Milky Way’s heart in March 2025. This extraordinary mosaic, assembled from nine exposures, reveals over 60 million stars densely packed in the galactic bulge, offering an unparalleled and sharp view of our galaxy’s core. The unique data from Euclid is set to significantly advance astronomical research, providing new insights into the structure of the Milky Way and supporting future discoveries in exoplanet science and galactic evolution.