Clouds of iron and rain of titanium on a new exoplanet – Watch videos

Astronomers have been recording data on exoplanet atmospheres in recent years, but an MIT team has for the first time been able to offer a glimpse into the dark side of an exoplanet. The reason for WASP-121b, a planet 850 light-years from Earth, which belongs to the category of Hot Jupiter and is tidal locked to its star, with one side always looking at the star and the other immersed in eternal darkness , ten times fainter than the bright side.

A Hot Jupiter has a huge mass, about the size of Jupiter, but unlike it is much warmer due to the short distance from its star. The WASP-121b orbits its star in just 30 hours.

So the dark side of the exoplanet contributes to the extremely violent water cycle. The researchers were able to record extreme changes in temperature from day to night. On the day side, water atoms decompose at temperatures in excess of 3,000 Kelvin (2,726 degrees Celsius), with hydrogen and oxygen atoms rejoining and becoming water again on the planet’s night side, moving with winds of up to 5 kilometers. per second.

In fact, water is not the only thing that circulates on the planet. Astronomers have found that the night side is cold enough to house clouds of iron, titanium and corundum (a mineral found in rubies and sapphires), which in turn are converted to gases on the bright side, giving a window of rain. and melted gems.

Unboxholics

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