Closing The Exoplanet Radius Gap

This illustration shows different super-Earths and sub-Neptunes, which are the two most common types of exoplanets in the Milky Way. Previous observations show that there's a radius gap in the exoplanet population, with few planets between 1.5 and 2.0 Earth radii. New research shows that around mid-to-late M dwarfs, no such valley exists. Image Credit: NASA Ames/JPL-Caltech

Kepler and TESS showed us that there's a radius gap in the exoplanet population. There are very few planets between 1.5 and 2 Earth radii, according to the data. But new research shows that the gap may not be as significant as thought.

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