Kitt Peak National Observatory Discovers Extremely Strange Orbit of Rare Exoplanet

Kitt Peak National Observatory Discovers Extremely Strange Orbit of Rare Exoplanet

Using the WIYN 3.5-meter telescope at the U.S. National Science Foundation's Kitt Peak National Observatory, a Program of the National Science Foundation's NOIRLab, astronomers have discovered the extreme orbit of an exoplanet that is on its way to becoming a "hot Jupiter". This exoplanet not only follows one of the most drastically stretched-out orbits of all known transiting exoplanets but is also orbiting its star backwards, lending insight into the mystery of how hot Jupiters evolve.

Planets that are more than twice the diameter of Earth have about ten Earth masses and enough gravity to hold onto hydrogen, the most abundant element in the Universe. Such large planets turn into gas giants like Jupiter and Saturn. Jupiter is more than ten times the diameter of Earth and more than 300 times the mass of Earth. Most of the 300 plus exoplanets that have been detected so far are gas giants. However, unlike Jupiter that is five times as far from the Sun as Earth, exoplanets, referred to as "hot Jupiters", are much closer to their stars than Earth is to the Sun.

Video Credit: NOIRLab

Images and Videos: International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/KPNO/R. Proctor/J. da Silva/Spaceengine/M. Zamani/ESO/L. Calçada/M. Kornmesser/N. Bartmann

Duration: 1 minute, 31 seconds

Release Date: July 17, 2024

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