How many planets in the galaxy?

Doing the math, we can then say that the Milky Way galaxy has – on average – between 800 billion and 3. 2 trillion planets, with some estimates placing that number as high a 8 trillion! However, in order to determine just how many of them are habitable, we need to consider the number of exoplanets discovered so far for the sake of a sample analysis. read more

The galaxy, as it was commonly referred to, was one of the trillions of galaxies in the universe. The galaxy was a vast composite of over 400 billion estimated stars and over 3. 2 million habitable systems orbiting around a super-massive black hole at the heart of the galaxy. read more

Once these new missions get going, we’ll have better estimates of the size and number of planets that orbit a typical star, and we’ll be able to come up with better estimates of just many planets there are in the galaxy. read more

This artist's illustration gives an impression of how common planets are around the stars in the Milky Way. The planets, their orbits and their host stars are all vastly magnified compared to their real separations. read more

Doing the math, we can then say that the Milky Way galaxy has – on average – between 800 billion and 3.2 trillion planets, with some estimates placing that number as high a 8 trillion! However, in order to determine just how many of them are habitable, we need to consider the number of exoplanets discovered so far for the sake of a sample analysis. read more