Two NASA-Led Studies Show the LISA Gravitational-Wave Observatory Could Reveal Exoplanets in Double White Dwarf Systems: a Jupiter-Mass Planet Detectable Thousands of Light-Years Away, Published in The Astrophysical Journal
NASA said on November 10, 2026, that two studies led by NASA astrophysicists show in new detail how the LISA (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna) observatory, now in development, could reveal a new and unique population of exoplanets throughout the galaxy. The two papers were published the same day in The Astrophysical Journal.
The studies target double white dwarf systems. White dwarfs are the Earth-sized remnants of stars like the Sun. Casey McGrath, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, said the most common source for LISA is expected to be double white dwarf systems, and that if an exoplanet also orbits within one of these systems, its presence becomes imprinted on the gravitational wave signal in a way that can be uncovered.
In the method, the planet gravity tugs on its host system, imparting a reflex motion that adds a Doppler modulation to the gravitational signal, appearing as sidebands at higher and lower frequencies than the primary signal. The first paper, authored solely by McGrath, examines the detection method and determines the planet masses and orbital periods where it would work best. The second paper, by McGrath and coauthors, investigates how such planets could be confirmed using NASA James Webb Space Telescope.
The team estimates cited by NASA include that LISA could detect a Jupiter-mass planet in such systems up to thousands of light-years away, that the Milky Way contains an estimated 10 million double white dwarf systems with orbital periods of less than an hour, and that LISA is expected to resolve about 10,000 individual systems. The Webb infrared method can detect an infrared excess out to at least 500 light-years, and for a test case system at that distance could detect an exoplanet about five times Jupiter mass.
LISA is led by ESA (the European Space Agency) and is slated for launch in the mid-2030s, with NASA contributing telescopes, the laser system and other critical hardware and support. The observatory will consist of three spacecraft forming a triangular array stretching 1.6 million miles (2.5 million kilometers) on each side. The possibility of detecting exoplanets around LISA double white dwarf systems was first proposed by Japanese astronomer Naoki Seto in 2008.
来源： https://science.nasa.gov/missions/lisa/gravitational-waves-can-reveal-new-worlds/
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
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