Blistering Pitch-Black Planet

[Waspie_Dwarf]

NASA's Hubble Captures Blistering Pitch-Black Planet

Quote

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has observed a planet outside our solar system that looks as black as fresh asphalt because it eats light rather than reflecting it back into space. This light-eating prowess is due to the planet's unique capability to trap at least 94 percent of the visible starlight falling into its atmosphere.

The oddball exoplanet, called WASP-12b, is one of a class of so-called "hot Jupiters," gigantic, gaseous planets that orbit very close to their host star and are heated to extreme temperatures. The planet's atmosphere is so hot that most molecules are unable to survive on the blistering day side of the planet, where the temperature is 4,600 degrees Fahrenheit. Therefore, clouds probably cannot form to reflect light back into space. Instead, incoming light penetrates deep into the planet's atmosphere where it is absorbed by hydrogen atoms and converted to heat energy.

  Read More: HubbleSite

 

[Parsec]

Wow, it looks like this WASP planetary system is really intriguing and quite unique so far, based on observations on WASP-12b and WASP-19b. 

 

I'm thrilled to know more about it. 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

1 hour ago, Parsec said:

Wow, it looks like this WASP planetary system is really intriguing 

Wasp-12b and Wasp-19b are in totally different planetary systems.

Wasp stands for Wide Angle Search for Exoplanets.

The number signifies that these were the 12th and 19th planetary systems found by this search.

The b signifies that in both cases this was the first planet discovered in their respective planetary system and ("a" is reserved for the parent star(s)).

[pallidin]

What a wonderful universe.

 

[Parsec]

10 hours ago, Waspie_Dwarf said:

Wasp-12b and Wasp-19b are in totally different planetary systems.

Wasp stands for Wide Angle Search for Exoplanets.

The number signifies that these were the 12th and 19th planetary systems found by this search.

The b signifies that in both cases this was the first planet discovered in their respective planetary system and ("a" is reserved for the parent star(s)).

Ah wow, what a gaffe. 

Cheers Waspie for pointing that out!