NASA astronomers have discovered an oversized planet orbiting a small star, regarding 280 light-years from Earth.
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This planet, called “forbidden” by scientists because of its size, is similar in size to Jupiter and was located using the TESS satellite, which is used to identify exoplanets, according to CNN.
Named TOI-5205b, this exoplanet orbits the red dwarf star TOI-5205, which is regarding 40% the size of the sun.
The discovery of such a large planet orbiting such a small star raises eyebrows for scientists, who published their observations via a study in The Astronomical Journal.
“The star, TOI-5205, is only four times the size of Jupiter,” study author Shubham Kanodia said in a statement. Despite this, a planet the size of Jupiter was able to form around it, which is rather surprising.
This discovery challenges some theories of planet formation.
Stars form from clouds of gas and dust in space.
The remaining materials then transform into a disc from which the planets in turn form.
“The existence of TOI-5205b challenges what we know regarding the discs from which the planets are born, continues the researcher. If there is not enough rocky material in the disk, a gas giant planet cannot form. TOI-5205b formed anyway. According to our theories, it should not exist. It is a “forbidden” planet.
The research team believes that other planets of this type might exist and that other discoveries might result from the study of their data.
