Is it likely we would find jupiter size planets when searching for extra-terrestrial planets?

Question

Why is more likely we would find a jupiter size planet when searching for extra-terrestrial planets?

Answer 1

We're finding those planets because of the techniques we're using. We're measuring the wobbles on stars cause by planets that orbit them . A lot of the planets we find are bigger than jupiter and some closer to their star than mercury. Another technique we use is measures a star being eclipsed by a planet. Once again, we will find mostly large planets.

Answer 2

Dear Mandy:

It is entirely possible that we will find Jupiter size planets orbiting around other stars. In the Milky Way Galaxy there are over 1000 million stars just like our own Sun. Each Star can have anywhere from 0 to10 (or more) planets. So there are a possible 10 x
1000 Million planets still to be identified, numbered and/or named in the other solar systems of the Milky Way Galaxy.

The problem is that the Stars themselves are so bright they prevent us from seeing the planets around them from our distant location on Earth. This is a problem very similar to looking into an automobile's headlights late at night. You can see the headlights with no problem, but everything around the headlights is blocked out by the brightness of the headlights. Astronomers will probably use radio astronomy and things like that to detect the distant planets of other galaxies.

Answer 3

Simply put: they're a lot bigger and therefore easier to detect.

The Terrestrial Planet Finder space telescope, once finished, should be able to directly image Earth-like planets around nearby stars and do basic chemical analysis, but this is well beyond the capability of any current scopes.