PSO J318.5-22 is a planet drifting through space without a star, and now scientists have discovered it has weird and wonderful weather too.
The fact that it doesn't have a star to orbit made it easier to study, thanks to less interference from light. The researchers found that the light reflected from the planet changed by about 10 percent in just a few hours.
One reason for this could be that the Jupiter-sized planet has multiple layers of clouds made up of molten iron and dust, which could be hotter than 800 degrees Celsius inside.
The findings were published in The Astrophysical Journal, and could be the first observed evidence of weather on a planet outside of our solar system.
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The fact that it doesn't have a star to orbit made it easier to study, thanks to less interference from light. The researchers found that the light reflected from the planet changed by about 10 percent in just a few hours.
One reason for this could be that the Jupiter-sized planet has multiple layers of clouds made up of molten iron and dust, which could be hotter than 800 degrees Celsius inside.
The findings were published in The Astrophysical Journal, and could be the first observed evidence of weather on a planet outside of our solar system.
Continue reading…
Continue reading...