Using Webb’s NIRSpec (Near-Infrared Spectrograph), astronomers detected a temperature variance between the eternal morning and evening sides of WASP-39 b. Evening temperatures were approximately 200 degrees Celsius hotter than morning temperatures
WASP-39b, a hot gas giant orbiting a star 700 light-years away, was among the first targets analyzed by Webb as it began its regular science operations in 2022.
Days after it completed two years in the vacuum of space, Nasa’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has provided scientists with the most detailed look yet at the atmosphere of an exoplanet.
The world’s most powerful observatory observed the differences between its eternal morning and eternal evening atmosphere.
WASP-39b, a hot gas giant orbiting a star 700 light-years away, was among the first targets analyzed by Webb as it began its regular science operations in 2022.
Scientists have chosen the exoplanet WASP-39 b as an object for study. This is a gas giant orbiting a yellow dwarf located at a distance of about 700 light-years from Earth. Its mass is about 0.28 times and its radius is 1.27 times larger than the mass and radius of Jupiter. Since the planet’s orbit passes at a distance of only 7 million kilometers from the star, its atmosphere is heated to a temperature of about 900 °C on the daytime side.
Another consequence of this proximity is that WASP-39 b is in a tidal entrainment. This means that one side of this planet is constantly illuminated by the star, while the other is shrouded in darkness. WASP-39 b also has areas of eternal sunrise and eternal sunset.
As quoted by nasa.gov, Néstor Espinoza, who is an exoplanet researcher at the Space Telescope Science Institute and lead author on the study, said, “WASP-39 b has become a sort of benchmark planet in studying the atmosphere of exoplanets with Webb.”
“It has an inflated, puffy atmosphere, so the signal coming from starlight filtered through the planet’s atmosphere is quite strong,” Espinoza added.
The complete day/night boundary is represented by the previously published Webb spectra of the atmosphere of WASP-39b, which showed the presence of carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide, water vapour and sodium. But there was no detailed attempt to differentiate between one side and the other.
Extensive modeling of the data obtained also allows researchers to investigate the structure of WASP-39 b’s atmosphere, the cloud cover, and why the evening is hotter. While future work by the team will study how the cloud cover may affect temperature, and vice versa, astronomers confirmed gas circulation around the planet as the main culprit of the temperature difference on WASP-39 b.
On a highly irradiated exoplanet like WASP-39 b that orbits relatively close to its star, researchers generally expect the gas to be moving as the planet rotates around its star: Hotter gas from the dayside should move through the evening to the nightside via a powerful equatorial jet stream. Since the temperature difference is so extreme, the air pressure difference would also be significant, which in turn would cause high wind speeds.
Wasp 39 b
WASP-39b, officially named Bocaprins, is a “hot Jupiter” extrasolar planet discovered in February 2011 by the WASP project, notable for containing a substantial amount of water in its atmosphere. In addition WASP-39b was the first exoplanet found to contain carbon dioxide in its atmosphere, and likewise for sulfur dioxide
WASP-39b is in the constellation Virgo, and is about 700 light-years from Earth.[1] As part of the NameExoWorlds campaigns at the 100th anniversary of the IAU, the planet was named Bocaprins, after the beach Boca Prins [de; es] in the Arikok National Park of Aruba.
Hot water molecules were found in the atmosphere of WASP-39b in a 2018 study. The atmospheric transmission spectra, taken by different instruments, were inconsistent as in 2021, possibly indicating a disequilibrium atmospheric chemistry. High-fidelity spectra obtained by the James Webb Space Telescope in 2022 did not confirm a disequilibrium chemistry
What is the WASP-39 b data?
_WASP-39 b is a gas giant exoplanet that orbits a G-type star. Its mass is 0.28 Jupiters, it takes 4.1 days to complete one orbit of its star, and is 0.0486 AU from its star. Its discovery was announced in 2011. In July 2022 it became the first exoplanet to be studied by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope
Why is WASP-39 b important?
Atmospheric composition
WASP-39b’s atmospheric transmission spectrum captured by Webb’s Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) reveals first clear evidence for carbon dioxide in a planet outside the Solar System
Who discovered WASP-39 b?
Here we describe the properties of WASP-39b, a new transiting Saturn-mass planet discovered by the SuperWASP survey. The planet host star WASP-39 belongs to the constellation of Virgo and thus resides in an equatorial region of sky, which is monitored by the SuperWASP-North and WASP-South telescopes simultaneously
Does WASP-39 b have water?
And, they found a lot of water. In fact, the planet, known as WASP-39b, has three times as much water as Saturn does. Though no planet like this resides in our solar system, WASP-39b can provide new insights into how and where planets form around a star, say researchers
How far is WASP-39 b from its star?
0.0486 astronomical units
WASP-39 b is a hot, puffy gas giant with a mass 0.28 times Jupiter (0.94 times Saturn) and a diameter 1.3 times greater than Jupiter, orbiting just 0.0486 astronomical units (4,500,000 miles) from its star
Where is WASP-39 b located?
Located in the constellation Virgo, WASP-39b whips around a quiet, Sun-like star, called WASP-39, once every four days. The exoplanet is currently positioned more than 20 times closer to its star than Earth is to the Sun
What color is WASP-39 b?
Also given the name Mulchatna, for a river in Alaska that supports indigenous and native populations. This far-off blue planet may look like a friendly haven – but don’t be deceived! Weather here is deadly. The planet’s cobalt blue color comes from a hazy, blow-torched atmosphere containing clouds laced with glass
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