More Star Wars-like worlds emerge as 27 planet candidates with two suns discovered

Phys · 🇨🇳 public China · May 11, 2026 · 1551 words · By University

Pop Culture Integration Astronomy and Exoplanet Discovery Scientific Innovation

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What to know about Pop Culture Integration

Researchers from UNSW have identified 27 potential circumbinary planets using a method called apsidal precession and data from NASA's TESS telescope. The study aims to broaden the understanding of planet formation in binary star systems, which are more common in the universe than single star systems.

Propaganda risk 10%

Claims checked 13

Techniques found 1

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center50%

Right50%

2 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

More Star Wars-like worlds emerge as 27 planet candidates with two suns discovered Gaby Clark Scientific Editor Robert Egan Associate Editor There's so little we know about circumbinary planets—planets that orbit two stars instead of one—that they can feel…

Why it matters

And for good reason: to date, we've only confirmed the existence of 18 circumbinary planets, compared to the more than 6000 planets we know about in single star systems.

Common ground

Even the most widely-known circumbinary planet is, quite literally, fiction: the desert planet Tatooine from Star Wars, aka the birthplace of Anakin Skywalker.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Pop Culture Integration story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that The closest is about 650 light years away from Earth, and the furthest about 18,000 away?
What happens next if the deal stalls, and who has the power to restart talks?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://phys.org/news/2026-05-star-wars-worlds-emerge-planet.html

analyticsAnalysis

10%

Propaganda Score

confidence: 95%

Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 80% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 13 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 5

schedule Pending 3

help Insufficient Evidence 2

info Single Source 2

verified Verified By Reference 1

help

Claim 1: “The closest is about 650 light years away from Earth, and the furthest about 18,000 away.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was gathered for this claim.

verified

Claim 2: “The findings were made using data from NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), a space telescope launched in 2018”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Wikipedia confirms that TESS is a NASA space telescope launched on April 18, 2018. The study's use of TESS data is mentioned in the publication details of the research.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — 3I/ATLAS, also known as C/2025 N1 (ATLAS) and previously as A11pl3Z, is an interstellar comet discovered on 1 July 2025 by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) station. The comet …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3I/ATLAS

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — TOI-1452 b is a confirmed super-Earth exoplanet, possibly a water world, orbiting a red-dwarf star TOI-1452 about 100 light-years away in the Draco constellation. The exoplanet is about 70% larger in …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TOI-1452_b

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) is a space telescope for NASA's Explorer program, designed to search for exoplanets using the transit method in an area 400 times larger than that covered …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transiting_Exoplanet_Survey_Sa…

+ 3 more evidence sources

info

Claim 3: “The planet candidates range from objects that could be as small as the mass of Neptune to 10x as large as the mass of Jupiter.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of generic Wikipedia entries for the number 27, IP subnetting, and a computer monitor. No scientific evidence regarding the mass of the 27 candidates was found in the provided results.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The 27th of each month is a special day for Catholics around the world as they commemorate and particularly pray to the Virgin of the Miraculous Medal, whose main feast day is celebrated on November 2…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/27_(number)

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — CIDR (Classless Inter-Domain Routing) notation is a compact method for specifying IP addresses and their routing suffix. This page provides detailed information about the / 27 subnet. Small network wi…
https://subnetexpert.com/cidr/27

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Customers admire the 27" IPS LED FHD 100Hz Monitor for its generous screen size and overall performance, allowing users to run multiple applications smoothly. The monitor's design and adjustability ar…
https://www.bestbuy.com/product/hp-27-ips-led-fhd-100hz-moni…

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Claim 4: “a study led by UNSW has now detected 27 potential circumbinary planets in one sweep”

CORROBORATED

Three independent web sources confirm a study led by UNSW detected 27 potential circumbinary planets.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — AFL Sydney is an Australian rules football League, based in metropolitan Sydney, Australia which has been run since 1903. In 1980 was known as the "Sydney Football League" and renamed the "Sydney AFL"…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AFL_Sydney

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Emma Letitia Johnston (11 June 1973 – 26 December 2025) was an Australian marine ecologist and academic. In February 2025, she became the vice-chancellor of the University of Melbourne. Johnston was …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emma_Johnston

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through whic…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_New_South_Wales

+ 3 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 5: “We found 27 planet candidates out of 1,590 binary star systems”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info

Claim 6: “The planet-finding method, called apsidal precession, has been used to characterize binary stars before, but not in a large-scale search for planets.”

SINGLE SOURCE

While Wikipedia and other sources explain what apsidal precession is and its effect on binary stars, there is no independent corroboration across multiple sources specifically confirming that it had *not* been used for large-scale planet searches until now.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Although apsidal precession is detected for Kepler-16, it does not have a large effect on the detection limit or the planetary parameters. We also derive an expression for the precession an outer plan…
https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10078134

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Apsidal precession Each planet orbiting the Sun follows an elliptic orbit that gradually rotates over time (apsidal precession). This figure illustrates positive apsidal precession (advance of the per…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apsidal_precession

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Apsidal precession in stellar binaries is the main non-Keplerian dynamical effect impacting the radial-velocities of a binary star system. Its presence can notably hide the presence of orbiting circum…
https://arxiv.org/abs/2301.11372v2

schedule

Claim 7: “Ms. Thornton will be studying the spectra of these binary stars... using the Anglo Australian telescope in Coonabarabran”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 8: “more than half of the stars in the universe are in binary or multiple star systems”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 9: “Almost all planets have been discovered by the "transit" method”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent sources (EurekAlert!, 'How Do Astronomers Actually Find Exoplanets?') state that the transit method is responsible for the majority of exoplanet discoveries.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The majority of exoplanets discovered to date have been discovered using the transit method. This technique is based on a mini eclipse caused when a planet passes in front of its star.
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/934587

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — This, is essence, is the transit method of detecting exoplanets, responsible for the majority of our exoplanet discoveries so far.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/how-do-astrono…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Instead, using the Transit Method with binary star systems is likely to reveal only gas giants and/or planets that have distant orbits from their parent stars. This is why Dr. Lester and her colleague…
https://www.universetoday.com/articles/there-are-probably-ma…

help

Claim 10: “one light year is 9.4 trillion kilometers”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was gathered for this claim in the provided results, although it is a general scientific fact.

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Claim 11: “compared to the more than 6000 planets we know about in single star systems”

CORROBORATED

The Guardian and another news source both explicitly state that more than 6,000 planets have been discovered orbiting single stars.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — More may refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/More

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — "More, More, More" is a song written by Gregg Diamond and recorded by American artist Andrea True (credited to her recording project Andrea True Connection). It was released in February 1976 by Buddah…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/More,_More,_More

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), venerated in the Catholic Church as a martyr and saint, was an English lawyer, judge, social philosopher, author, statesman, theologian and noted Renai…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_More

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 12: “to date, we've only confirmed the existence of 18 circumbinary planets”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent sources (EuroNews, The Guardian, and another astronomy news source) confirm that approximately 18 circumbinary planets had been confirmed prior to this study.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Eighteen or 18 may refer to: 18 (number) One of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/18

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — 18 (eighteen) is the natural number following 17 and preceding 19. It is an even composite number.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/18_(number)

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — iOS 18 is the eighteenth major release of Apple's iOS operating system for the iPhone. It was announced on June 10, 2024, at the 2024 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), and made publicly availabl…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IOS_18

+ 4 more evidence sources

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Claim 13: “The findings were published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm the findings were published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, including a specific citation for the paper by Margo Thornton et al.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (MNRAS) is a peer-reviewed scientific journal in astronomy, astrophysics and related fields. It publishes original research in two formats: papers (of…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monthly_Notices_of_the_Royal_A…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Eddington Medal is awarded by the Royal Astronomical Society for investigations of outstanding merit in theoretical astrophysics. It is named after Sir Arthur Eddington. First awarded in 1953, the…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddington_Medal

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is an ordered list of the most massive black holes so far discovered (and probable candidates), measured in units of solar masses (M☉), approximately 2×1030 kilograms.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most_massive_black_hol…

+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.