Make sure you complete this interactive exercise tutorial before you start working on this question. Otherwise it will be too confusing. The point of this exercise is to not only let you duplicate the actual scientific measurement process but also to show that not all systems can be easily detected.

Detection requires an optimum combination of different kinds of observing parameters (and the different cases give you different combinations of these parameters)

1. Solve for the mass and separation of the three planetary systems, Gl171.2, NN4066 and Gl725.3, under the catalog called Four Sample Stars. Note that you are to solve for three different systems using three different combinations of detector parameters (Case I, II and III) as specified at the bottom of the interactive exercise page these means doing 9 separate simulations and report on whether or not a successful detection of a planetary "wobble" curve was achieved. In most cases, there will not be a successful detection and you need to think about and report on why that is the case.

For each star and case:

a) record the mass of the hypothetical planet (in Jupiter masses),

b) record the distance of the hypothetical planet and

c) the most important part argue whether or not the data is good enough to even perform a credible fit - in many cases the data is not good enough and you need to look at it and explain why. Thus, this question has 27 parts to answer. And because it's so involved, it's worth the majority of the homework points. So please do this simulation as completely as possible.

2. In addition to the "Doppler Wobble" method for extra-solar planetary detection, there are other methods now used. Research and report on some of those methods and their overall success rate in detecting new solar systems.