Exoplanet Direct Imaging 3D Explorer vs Exoplanet Transit 3D Explorer
freetoolonline.com editorial team
Both pages teach a real exoplanet-detection method in one page load - 0 MB installed, USD 0, no account. The Exoplanet Direct Imaging 3D Explorer photographs a planet's own infrared glow directly; the Exoplanet Transit 3D Explorer infers a planet only from the brightness dip it causes crossing its star.
The numbers side by side
| Aspect | Direct Imaging Explorer | Transit Explorer |
|---|---|---|
| Install size | 0 MB - runs in the browser | 0 MB - runs in the browser |
| Price | USD 0 | USD 0 |
| Key figures | HR 8799 b/c/d/e: 6.0 to 9.6 Jupiter masses, 16.00 to 71.3 AU separation | Jupiter-Sun transit depth about 1%; Earth-Sun about 0.0084% |
| What it needs | A young, hot, wide-separation giant planet still glowing in infrared | An edge-on orbit that crosses the star's face as seen from Earth |
| Discovery years cited | 2008 (b, c, d) and 2010 (e), Marois et al. | TRAPPIST-1 catalog, 7 planets, 1.5 to 19 day periods |
Where the Direct Imaging Explorer wins
The Direct Imaging Explorer wins when the question is seeing a planet's own light rather than an inferred signal - it is the only page on the site with a planet-pick dropdown that rewrites real per-planet mass, separation, and discovery-year figures for four confirmed exoplanets in one system.
Where the Transit Explorer wins
The Transit Explorer wins when the question is how a dip size reveals a planet's radius - it scrubs orbit phase live and toggles Jupiter-Sun versus Earth-Sun depth presets, which the direct-imaging page does not show at all.
A reasonable rule
As a reasonable rule, use the Direct Imaging Explorer first to see that a handful of young giant planets can be photographed directly, then use the Transit Explorer to see how the far more common dip method finds thousands more planets that are too old or too close to their star to glow visibly.
See how to use the Exoplanet Direct Imaging 3D Explorer for a step-by-step walkthrough.
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