WASP-39b is a hot Saturn with some nasty chemicals in its skies.
NASA, ESA, CSA, J. Olmsted
Webb observed the planet by waiting for it to transit in front of its host star; when it did, the star’s light illuminated the planet from behind. Webb picked up infrared wavelengths of that light, and scientists can deduce which chemicals are present in the atmosphere based on the wavelengths of light they absorbed.Webb’s capabilities have broader implications for understanding the diversity of exoplanets in our galaxy, with an eye toward their potential habitability.
“I am looking forward to seeing what we find in the atmospheres of small, terrestrial planets,” said Mercedes López-Morales, an astronomer at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian and a co-author of the recent work, in the ESA release.that the chemicals in the planet’s atmosphere may be broken up in clouds, rather than evenly distributed in its atmosphere.
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