Astronomers use Hubble to study cloudy exoplanets
Posted: Thu, Jan 2, 2014, 7:45 AM ET (1245 GMT)
Observations by the Hubble Space Telescope have allowed astronomers to determine that two relatively nearby exoplanets likely have cloudy atmospheres. In a pair of papers published in this week's issue of the journal Nature, astronomers reported on Hubble spectral observations of the exoplanets GJ 436b and GJ 1214b as they transited their stars as seen from Earth. The Hubble observations of GJ 436b, a planet similar in size to Neptune but in a closer orbit, were featureless, suggesting it has a high cloud layer blocking observations of the lower atmosphere, or an atmosphere free of hydrogen. Observations of GJ 1214b, a super-Earth, were also featureless, but scientists said they had "definitive evidence of high clouds" because they could rule out the presence of non-hydrogen constituents.
Observations by the Hubble Space Telescope have allowed astronomers to determine that two relatively nearby exoplanets likely have cloudy atmospheres. In a pair of papers published in this week's issue of the journal Nature, astronomers reported on Hubble spectral observations of the exoplanets GJ 436b and GJ 1214b as they transited their stars as seen from Earth. The Hubble observations of GJ 436b, a planet similar in size to Neptune but in a closer orbit, were featureless, suggesting it has a high cloud layer blocking observations of the lower atmosphere, or an atmosphere free of hydrogen. Observations of GJ 1214b, a super-Earth, were also featureless, but scientists said they had "definitive evidence of high clouds" because they could rule out the presence of non-hydrogen constituents.| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Thursday, August 27
'End of an era': SpaceX official marks final Falcon 9 Starlink launch from Florida, says Starship will take over
WESH-TV Orlando — 6:38 am ET (1038 GMT) Editorial: Louisiana welcomes the promise of SpaceX
New Orleans Advocate — 6:37 am ET (1037 GMT) Can Humans Get Pregnant in Space?
National Geographic — 6:30 am ET (1030 GMT) Vermilion Parish weighs in as SpaceX invests $100B in Spaceport, Louisiana
KATC-TV Lafayette, LA — 6:28 am ET (1028 GMT) Space Florida selected as one of 7 NASA-designated aerospace workforce hubs, gets $1.5M grant
Florida Politics — 6:25 am ET (1025 GMT) |
