- Experts said the planet is hot and has a portion of its mass the size of Jupiter | Photo: EFE
An international team of astronomers observed, thanks to the James Webb Space Telescope from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a particularly inflated and asymmetric exoplanet, which reveals that there is a significant difference between the two edges of its atmosphere.
The discovery was made by astronomers from the University of Arizona (United States), together with experts from other research centers. The results were published on Tuesday, September 24, in the journal Nature Astronomy.
exoplanet
It is a planet that orbits a star other than the Sun, that is, it is outside our solar system. It is also known as an extrasolar planet.
The scientists revealed that the hot exoplanet, which they named WASP-107b, is one-tenth the mass of Jupiter and the size of Jupiter. It also has a very pronounced east-west asymmetry in its atmosphere, which refers to differences in atmospheric characteristics, such as temperature or cloud properties, observed between the eastern and western hemispheres of the planet.
According to the publication, determining whether or not this asymmetry exists is crucial to understanding the climate, atmospheric dynamics and weather patterns of planets beyond the solar system.
The exoplanet is unique because it has a “very low” density and a “relatively low” gravity, which gives rise to a more inflated atmosphere than other exoplanets with its mass would have, the researchers explained in the extract provided by the media.
Researchers have been observing exoplanets for nearly two decades, and many observations from both the ground and space have helped astronomers guess what the atmosphere of exoplanets would be like. Scientists said they found that this planet has approximately 476.6 degrees Celsius, a temperature between the planets in the solar system and the hottest exoplanets known.
Stars discovered
According to the NASA Exoplanet ArchiveAs of September 17, 2024, more than 5,700 exoplanets and 7,217 candidates for investigation have been detected.
One of the most recent discoveries occurred in July 2024. NASA reported that astronomers used the James Webb Space Telescope to obtain a direct image of an exoplanet, located about 12 light years from Earth.
The planet, identified as Epsilon Indi Ab, is one of the coldest exoplanets observed, the US agency said in a publication on its website. Web page.
The institution explained that the planet has “several times” the mass of Jupiter and orbits the K-type star Epsilon Indi A (Eps Ind A), which is approximately the age of the Sun, but is cooler, with an estimated temperature of 1.6 degrees Celsius.
Potential exoplanets to inhabit
In January 2024, a group of scientists reported the discovery of 85 exoplanets with Earth-like conditions, which could mean they are suitable for living on.
The research was led by Faith Hawthorn, a PhD student at the University of Warwick, and published in the scientific journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (MNRAS).
To study exoplanets, astronomers used data from NASA’s Transitioning Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), which allows scientists to observe transiting stars in other solar systems.
The study revealed that the size of the 85 exoplanets varies significantly between 17,702 and 563,284 kilometers in diameter, exceeding the size of Earth (12,742 kilometers in diameter).
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2024-09-24 21:01:12
