Giant Planet WASP-121b Suspected to Have Rain of Liquid Gems, Study Explains

KOMPAS.com – a planet giant exoplanet or exoplanet which is about 855 light-years from Earth, is thought to have metallic clouds and liquid gem rain in it. Exoplanet named WASP-121b It is also known to have some uniqueness.

According to a study published in the journal Nature Astronomy on Monday (21/2/2022), the planet WASP-121b was first discovered in 2015 through observations of the Hubble Space Telescope.

The planet’s temperature reaches 2,227 degrees Celsius in the deepest layer of the atmosphere and 3,227 degrees Celsius in the upper layers on the daytime side.

While on the night side, the temperature is cooler at 1,527 degrees Celsius, and drops to 1,227 degrees Celsius in the upper atmosphere.

Researchers also say the mass and diameter of WASP-121b is larger than the planet Jupiter.

The exoplanet’s very hot temperature makes heavy metal elements such as iron and magnesium constantly flow out of the atmosphere into space.

Also read: Scientist Finds Intact Giant Planet Surrounding Dead Stars

Since it was first identified, researchers have begun to study giant planet WASP-121b to determine its characteristics, one of which found that this planet has a rain of molten gems.

“With these observations, we really get a global view of the meteorology of a exoplanet,” said study lead author Thomas Mikal-Evans.

As reported by CNNMonday (21/2/2022) every 30 hours, WASP-121b will complete one orbit.

One side of the planet facing the star will experience daytime, while the other side is permanently night.

“Hot Jupiter is known to have a very bright daytime side, but a different night side. The night side (of the giant planet) WASP-121b is about 10 times dimmer than its day side,” explained co-authors of the study. Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyTansu Daylan, explained besides giant planet has a rain of gems to fall.

Also read: Rare Phenomenon, Two Giant Planets Dancing Together in Space

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