Final answer:
The Doppler Wobble or Radial Velocity (RV) method employs the Doppler shift to detect the wobble in a star caused by the gravitational pull of orbiting planets. Utilizing redshift and blueshift measurements of the star's spectrum, this technique can determine the presence, mass, and orbital period of exoplanets.
Step-by-step explanation:
The method that utilizes the Doppler shift of light to detect the wobble generated by planets orbiting a star is known as the Doppler Wobble or Radial Velocity (RV) method. This technique leverages the Doppler effect to measure a star's radial velocity—the speed at which the star moves toward or away from us. A planet's gravitational influence results in a detectable stellar wobble, indicated by a small change in the star's radial velocity. When the star moves away from Earth, we observe a redshift in the lines of its spectrum; conversely, a blueshift is seen when the star moves towards us. These shifts are slight, requiring sophisticated equipment for detection, but they allow astronomers to infer the presence of planets around the star, as well as to estimate their mass and orbital period.
This detection technique is highly sensitive to larger planets residing closer to their host stars since they cause a greater wobble. It has been used extensively on large ground-based telescopes, detecting hundreds of exoplanets, even one orbiting the nearest star to the Sun, Proxima Centauri.