Big questions about space, answered in plain words
These guides explain how we find planets around other stars, what those faraway worlds are made of, and which ones might be a little like home — no science degree required. Each one is short and friendly, and comes paired with a hands-on tool so you can explore the real data yourself. Start anywhere — and remember the rule we keep coming back to: space is stranger, bigger, and more wonderful than the headlines let on.
Don’t just read about space – explore it
Extremetica isn’t only articles. It’s full of hands-on tools built on real NASA data. Pick a planet, build a star system, or see how far away the stars really are.
July 27, 2026
Could Kepler-991 b Be Friendly to Life?
Kepler-991 b is a planet more than 1,200 light-years away that scientists discovered in 2016. It’s bigger than Earth, orbits a calm orange star, and has a temperature that might not rule out life — but there’s still a lot we don’t know.
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July 26, 2026
TOI-1718 b: A New World Around TOI-1718
TOI-1718 b is a scorching hot planet nearly four times wider than Earth, racing around its star in less than six days. It belongs to a type of world that doesn’t exist in our solar system — and scientists are just beginning to uncover its secrets.
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July 25, 2026
How Long Would It Take to Reach Gl 725 A b?
Gl 725 A b is one of the closest exoplanets to Earth, but even at 11.5 light-years away, it would take our fastest spacecraft about 209,000 years to get there. Find out what that distance really means and what we know about this nearby world.
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July 24, 2026
HD 85426 c: Getting to Know a Mini-Neptune
HD 85426 c is a faraway world bigger than Earth but smaller than Neptune, and scientists have already figured out some surprising things about it. Find out what it might be made of, how hot it gets, and why this planet is such a great example of how space science works.
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July 23, 2026
Inside TOI-178: A Family of 6 Planets
About 205 light-years away, a cool orange star is home to six planets packed tightly together and moving in a perfectly timed rhythm. This amazing system breaks many rules scientists expected — and it has a lot to teach us about how planetary families form.
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July 22, 2026
Spotting TIC 231949697 b: The Transit Method
How do you find a planet you can never see? Astronomers used clever tricks with starlight to spot TIC 231949697 b, a scorching rocky world 164 light-years away. Find out how tiny dips in brightness led to one of science’s coolest discoveries.
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