NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has detected atmospheric gases surrounding 55 Cancri e, a hot rocky exoplanet 41 light-years from Earth.

Science and Technology

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has detected atmospheric gases surrounding 55 Cancri e, a hot rocky exoplanet 41 light-years from Earth. This discovery marks the first time an atmosphere has been identified surrounding a terrestrial planet outside our Solar System. “55 Cancri e” is a hot rocky planet orbiting a star 41 light-years from Earth. Its orbit is just 2.25 million km from its host star – so close that the planet’s surface is likely molten. The planet is twice as big as Earth, making it a “super-Earth.” Despite not being able to capture a direct image of 55 Cancri e , JWST’s NIRCam and MIRI instruments are able to detect subtle changes in the light as the planet orbits the star.


     

     

     

 

     


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