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AFP
This handout artist's view provided by the European Space Agency (ESA) shows GJ1214b, a super-Earth orbiting a red dwarf star 40 light-years from Earth.
New York - An astronaut attempting to visit recently discovered planet GJ1214b would land in hot water - literally, US scientists say.
Researchers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics said they have identified an entirely new kind of planet, dominated not by rock, gas or other common materials, but water.
The planet is “a waterworld enshrouded by a thick, steamy atmosphere,” they said in a statement, after scrutinising the planet with Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope.
“GJ1214b is like no planet we know of,” astronomer Zachary Berta said. “A huge fraction of its mass is made up of water.”
GJ1214b was discovered in 2009 by the ground-based MEarth Project. Described as a “super-Earth,” it is about 2.7 times Earth's diameter and weighs almost 7 times as much.
Further studies in 2010 led to scientists suspecting that the planet, where the temperature is some 450 degrees Fahrenheit (232 Celsius), was largely covered in water. This was confirmed by Berta and his co-authors using Hubble to study the planet when it crossed in front of its host star.
The light of the star, filtered through the planet's atmosphere, gave clues to the mix of gasses, backing up the water vapour theory.
“The Hubble measurements really tip the balance in favour of a steamy atmosphere,” Berta said.
Further measurements and estimates led scientists to conclude that the planet has much more water than Earth and much less rock. That, together with high temperatures and pressure, likely produce some highly exotic results, including “hot ice,” scientists say.
Our solar system contains three basic planet types: rocky, like Earth; gas giants like Jupiter or Saturn; and ice giants like Uranus. - Sapa-AFP
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Wayne, wrote
You should get out more, your nerdness is overwhelming and irritating. Nonetheless interesting article.
Meme-Man, wrote
Anonymous @ 1.02pm - "weighs 7 times."How'd they figure this out?" - if you're the same Anon who always chirps in with idiocy, this will be a facetious question; and I will treat it as such; if it is a genuine question, I apologize, but we are plagued by stupidity on this comment section: Ever heard of Newton, Anon? Lived 200 years ago and figured out gravity and its formulas; Keppler refined out orbits - well... from speed and proximity of orbit - that's how they very accurately figure out mass, you numbskull. Ray@02.35pm being 7 times our mass it would have significantly greater gravity - and pressure allows boiling point to rise - that's how pressure cookers work. Grep - gravity and pressure would mean it's can be a liquid - water only turns to steam at 100c at sea level pressure... (and that's not strictly true, but it's too complicated to explain).
clive, wrote
@ Anonymous 01:02. By measuring the effect of it's gravity on other bodies. Gravity is a function of mass. Because it has so much more mass than earth, it's atmospheric pressure is so much higher. Because it is so much higher, the water does not boil at such high temperatures.
grep, wrote
@Anon01:02pm: By measuring its affect on the star it orbits. @Ray: At 232C it's still water, as a vapour.
zbesh, wrote
ray, wrote
Anonymous, wrote
Anonymous, wrote
Brendan, wrote
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