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Hubble has just observed a pitch black exoplanet that reflects almost no light, which sheds light on the atmospheric composition of the planet.
A team of researchers using the Hubble Space Telescope have just made an astonishing discovery, finding a planet outside of our solar system that is so dark it absorbs almost all light that reaches it. It’s called Wasp-12b, and it is known as a hot jupiter, or a gas giant that orbits very close to its host star.
The planet, which is tidally locked, has a day side that can reach 4,600 degrees Fahrenheit. It also absorb about 94 percent of all light that reaches it, making it almost pitch black in appearance. Normally, it would have a dark side that would be 2,000 degrees cooler allowing clouds to develop which would reflect light back into space, but not in this case.
Read more http://www.babwnews.com/2017/09/scientists-shocked-by-huge-discovery-deep-in-space-3/
A team of researchers using the Hubble Space Telescope have just made an astonishing discovery, finding a planet outside of our solar system that is so dark it absorbs almost all light that reaches it. It’s called Wasp-12b, and it is known as a hot jupiter, or a gas giant that orbits very close to its host star.
The planet, which is tidally locked, has a day side that can reach 4,600 degrees Fahrenheit. It also absorb about 94 percent of all light that reaches it, making it almost pitch black in appearance. Normally, it would have a dark side that would be 2,000 degrees cooler allowing clouds to develop which would reflect light back into space, but not in this case.
Read more http://www.babwnews.com/2017/09/scientists-shocked-by-huge-discovery-deep-in-space-3/
