Lampung City (Lampost.co) – Scientists find strong evidence that they exist month orbiting volcanoes planet outside the solar system, just around WASP-49 b. The discovery was based on the detection of sodium clouds in the planet’s atmosphere.
It is thought to have come from an active volcanic exomoon, similar to Io, the most volcanic moon in our solar system. If confirmed, this would be the first discovery of a volcanic moon outside the Solar System and a major advance in astronomy.
Planet WASP-49 b is a Saturn-sized gas giant located 635 light years from Earth. Researchers from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California discovered clouds of sodium surrounding the planet’s atmosphere.
They suspect that the cloud does not come from a planet, but from an active exomoon that has not been directly detected.
In previous research, scientists predicted several candidate exomoons orbiting WASP-49 b. However, exomoons are still a mystery and volcanic activity on satellites like Io could be the key to identifying them.
At the same time, Io, one of Jupiter’s moons, has a volcanic eruption that emits gases such as sulfur dioxide, sodium and potassium. This activity creates large clouds around the parent planet. A similar phenomenon may also occur in WASP-49 b.
The sodium clouds found on WASP-49 b are thought to be produced by objects orbiting the planet, not from the planet’s own atmosphere. The discovery was made using the Very Large Telescope belonging to the European Southern Observatory (ESO) in Chile.
The cloud sits high above the planet’s atmosphere, similar to the gas clouds around Jupiter from Io. Researchers found that the cloud source produced about 100,000 kilograms of sodium per second.
Additionally, the size of the cloud appears to change as the object moves away from the planet. This indicates that the cloud is constantly being replenished by a source that could be an active exomoon.
Apurva Oza, lead author of the study, noted that the direction of the cloud’s movement did not match the planet’s atmospheric pattern. Thus, strengthening the hypothesis that the source comes from a natural satellite.
The gas source is moving at a speed that is not in sync with the orbital cycle of WASP-49 b, which takes only 2.8 days. Computer models show that the exomoon could have a very fast orbit, about once every eight hours.
Why are the Conclusions important?
If it is confirmed that the sodium gas cloud came from a volcanic moon, this discovery is the first evidence of a volcanic exomoon outside the solar system. This provides new insight into how active volcanic eruptions can form and survive in other planetary systems.
The discovery also paves the way for further ideas to identify small, thin objects such as exomoons. In addition, the discovery expands the understanding of the diversity of celestial bodies in the universe.
Alien phenomena such as volcanic activity on exomoons could be important in the search for life beyond Earth. This is because chemical reactions resulting from volcanism often create an environment that supports the development of life.
To confirm the discovery, further telescope observations with higher sensitivity must be used. Astronomers hope to be able to find this object directly or study more deeply the composition of the gas cloud around the planet WASP-49 b.
The findings were published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters on September 30 and are the first step in exomoon research. If volcanic moons like Io are out there, we’re just waiting for more surprises from the universe.
2024-10-13 03:00:00
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