First 3D Observations of an Exoplanet’s Atmosphere: WASP-121 b | ESO
Astronomers have revealed for the first time the 3D structure of an exoplanet’s atmosphere. Tylos (or WASP-121b) is a gaseous, giant exoplanet located some 900 light-years away. Astronomers were able to differentiate three different layers in its atmosphere, where winds carry elements like hydrogen, sodium, iron at extreme speeds, creating weather patterns never seen before. This was possible by combining all four telescope units of the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope in Chile.
This planet’s atmosphere behaves in ways that challenge our understanding of how weather works — not just on Earth, but on all planets. It feels like something out of science fiction,” says Julia Victoria Seidel, a researcher at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) in Chile and lead author of the study, published today in Nature:
https://www.eso.org/public/archives/releases/sciencepapers/eso2504/eso2504a.pdf
This is the first time astronomers have been able to study the atmosphere of a planet outside our Solar System in such depth and detail.
“What we found was surprising: a jet stream rotates material around the planet’s equator, while a separate flow at lower levels of the atmosphere moves gas from the hot side to the cooler side. This kind of climate has never been seen before on any planet,” says Seidel, who is also a researcher at the Lagrange Laboratory, part of the Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, in France. The observed jet stream spans half of the planet, gaining speed and violently churning the atmosphere high up in the sky as it crosses the hot side of Tylos. “Even the strongest hurricanes in the Solar System seem calm in comparison,” she adds.
Script: A. Izquierdo Lopez, S. Bromilow
Footage and photos: ESO, L. Calçada, M. Kornmesser, D. Gasparri, C. Malin
Editing: A. Tsaousis
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