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The universe is a deep mystery, and astronomers and other experts are continually trying to unlock some secret through their research. In a recent study, it was discovered that there is a hot, rocky exoplanet known as super-Earth. This planet is present in the Milky Way galaxy and is said to be orbiting one of the oldest stars in the galaxy.
According to a report published in the CNN, the super-Earth is called an exoplanet because it is located outside the solar system. The reason behind the name is that super-Earth is three times the mass of Earth and is about 50% larger than Earth. This planet is also known as TOI-561b.
According to experts, the super-Earth can complete an orbit around its star in less than half an Earth day. As for the temperature of this planet, it is around 3140 degrees Fahrenheit. The surface temperature is the result of the proximity of the star. Stephen Kane, co-author of the study and an astrophysicist at the University of California at Riverside, confirmed the orbit time information in a statement. He mentioned that for every day a person spends on Earth, the exoplanet revolves around their star twice.
The next obvious question that arises here is how this planet named TOI-561b was discovered. Experts had discovered this planet thanks to the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission which was launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 2018. The planet was found in the thick galactic disk of the galaxy of the Milky Way. In order to be completely sure of their discovery, the experts traveled to the WM Keck Observatory in Hawaii to determine the mass, radius and density of the super-Earth. Understanding mass and radius helps astronomers learn more about its internal structure.
Their findings were shocking because they found that even though the mass of the planet is three times that of Earth, its density is almost the same. Reacting to this, Stephen Kane said: “It is surprising as one would expect the density to be higher.”
He also mentioned that this planet is not able to support habitable life. Stephen added that knowing the interior of the planet helps to understand whether the surface of the planet is habitable or not. “Although this planet is unlikely to be inhabited today, it could be the harbinger of many rocky worlds yet to be discovered around the oldest stars in our galaxy,” he added.
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