How many planets in other solar systems have been found?

The number of exoplanets or extrasolar planets that have been found in other solar systems changes almost daily so here I will explain how to easily find out the latest information yourself. It is important to distinguish between confirmed planets and those that are just candidates. The latter need follow-up work which may reveal them to be false-alarms (for example the mistaken signals could originate from a binary star system).

Confirmed Exoplanets

Since the latest number of confirmed exoplanets changes almost daily, here I will show you the most reliable way to find the number of firm extrasolar planet identifications. Go to the Extrasolar Planets Encyclopedia catalog page and read the line immediately above the data table. This line, towards the left-hand side of the page tells you, amongst other things, the latest number of exoplanets that have been found. The second number is the number you are looking for. For example, when I did this on 20 October, 2012 I got the following:

Showing 665 planetary systems / 843 planets / 126 multiple planet systems

(italics added by me). The key number here is therefore 843. This is already phenomenal considering that this exciting new science is in its infancy.

Learn more in Exoplanets and Alien Solar Systems.

Book Tutorial Exoplanets FAQ Exoplanets Websites

File under: Number of exoplanets or extrasolar planets found; number of new planets discovered. Confirmed versus candidate planets.