Good: Water vapor signal detected for first time on distant planet Bad: Ah, we ll let one of the boffins explain theregister.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theregister.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Astronomers obtain the first direct evidence of hydroxyl molecules in the atmosphere of a planet beyond the Solar System.
Artist’s impression of an ultra-hot Jupiter exoplanet, WASP-33b. Image credit Astrobiology Center
An international collaboration of astronomers led by a researcher from the Astrobiology Center and Queen’s University Belfast, and including researchers from Trinity College Dublin, has detected a new chemical signature in the atmosphere of an extrasolar planet (a planet that orbits a star other than our Sun).
The hydroxyl radical (OH) was found on the dayside of the exoplanet WASP-33b. This planet is an “ultra-hot Jupiter”, a gas-giant planet orbiting its host star much closer than Mercury orbits the Sun and therefore reaching atmospheric temperatures of more than 2,500°C (hot enough to melt most metals).
An international team led by astronomers at Queenâs University Belfast has detected a new âchemical signatureâ in the atmosphere of a planet that orbits a star other than our Sun. It may ultimately lead to an answer to the question: âAre we alone?â
The discovery by researchers from QUB; the Astrobiology Center (ABC) of the National Institutes of Natural Sciences in Tokyo and Trinity College Dublin helps pave the way to probing atmospheres of smaller rocky planets resembling the Earth.
Exploration of the atmospheres of these âextrasolarâ planets assists in the search for Earth-like exoplanets and may provide an indication of the likelihood of life on other planets.
First ever hydroxyl radical detected in ‘ultra-hot Jupiter’ atmosphere
Artist’s impression of an ultra-hot Jupiter exoplanet, WASP-33b. Image: Astrobiology Center
Astronomers used a new instrument to detect hydroxyl radical in the atmosphere of WASP-33b, the exoplanet known as ‘ultra-hot Jupiter’.
An international team of astronomers have detected a new chemical signature in the atmosphere of an exoplanet.
The team, which includes researchers from Trinity College Dublin and Queen’s University Belfast, found the first direct evidence of a hydroxyl radical (OH) in the atmosphere of a planet outside the solar system.
An OH is a type of free radical and the neutral form of the hydroxide ion. It is a highly reactive species that attack most of the organic molecules.
Astronomers detect first ever hydroxyl molecule signature in an exoplanet atmosphere eurekalert.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from eurekalert.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.