Scientists Detect Up to 170 New Rogue Planets Wandering our Galaxy

Using several telescopes of the European Southern Observatory, scientists have discovered up to 170 rogue planets wandering around the Milky Way.

These planets are not gravitationally bound to any star, so it is very difficult to find them because they are not illuminated by stars and wander in dark interstellar space.

If a planet is young and hot, its own residual heat helps find it. That's how scientists found the new rogue planets this time after analyzing 80,000 images taken over the past 20 years of astronomical observations.

The found planets are located in the region encompassing Upper Scorpius and Ophiuchus. In total, scientists found between 70 and 170 rogue planets.