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    Ultrahot Planets have Starlike Atmospheres

    August 10, 2018, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    These simulated views of the ultrahot Jupiter WASP-121b show what the planet might look like to the human eye from five different vantage points, each illuminated to different degrees by its parent star. The images were made with a computer simulation being used to help scientists understand the atmospheres of these planets. Ultrahot Jupiters reflect almost no light, much like charcoal. However, their daysides have temperatures of between 3,600 F and 5,400 F, so they produce their own glow like a hot ember. The orange color in this simulated image thus comes from the planet's own heat. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Vivien Parmentier/Aix-Marseille University (AMU)

    These simulated views of the ultrahot Jupiter WASP-121b show what the planet might look like to the human eye from five different vantage points, each illuminated to different degrees by its parent star. The images were made with a computer simulation being used to help scientists understand the atmospheres of these planets. Ultrahot Jupiters reflect almost no light, much like charcoal. However, their daysides have temperatures of between 3,600 F and 5,400 F, so they produce their own glow like a hot ember. The orange color in this simulated image thus comes from the planet’s own heat.
    Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Vivien Parmentier/Aix-Marseille University (AMU)

    An unusual kind of star-planet hybrid atmosphere is emerging from studies of ultrahot planets orbiting close to other stars...

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