New Exoplanet discovered by NASA: What does this planet reveal about our solar system?

A new study published on NASA’s official website has reported the detection of an exoplanet. This exoplanet is much like our Jupiter. Here is everything you need to know about this Jupiter like planet.

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Exoplanet HIP 67522 b

NASA published the reports of detection of exoplanet HIP 67522 b on its official website on June 24, 2020. According to NASA, this planet appears to be the youngest hot Jupiter ever found. This hot Jupiter is orbiting a well-studied star, which remains unspecified by NASA yet. 

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The study also suggest that this hot Jupiter is only a few million years old, which means that it is much younger than other hot Jupiters, which are at least a few billion years old. Exoplanet HIP 67522 b is located only 490 light-years away from earth. Its has a diameter which is 10 times that of earth, in other words, it’s almost as big as our Jupiter. The Jupiter like planet takes only seven days to orbit its star, which has almost the same mass as our Sun. The massive size of this planet strongly indicates, that like our Jupiter, exoplanet HIP 67522 b is also a gas giant.

Image Credit: NASA

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How was the Jupiter like planet identified?

HIP 67522 b was identified as a planet candidate by NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). This technology detects planets via the transit method. Which means that scientists search for small dips in the brightness of a star, indicating that an orbiting planet has passed between the observer and the star.

Aaron Rizzuto is an exoplanet scientist at the University of Texas at Austin who led this study. Aaron revealed to a science portal that we can learn a lot about our solar system and how it came to be, by studying these exoplanets. These exoplanets will help us to understand, how unique or common everything in our solar system is. Rizzuto claimed that exoplanet scientists are finding out how our solar system fits in the bigger picture of planet formation in the universe.

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How do hot Jupiters get so close to their parent stars?

Currently, there are a few hypotheses about how this new planet is so close to its star.

• First is that they form there and stay put. However, it’s hard to imagine planets forming in such harsh conditions. The scorching heat from the star will vaporise all the planet-forming material.

• Second suggests that the hot Jupiters form far away from their parent star. Even past a boundary called the snow line. After their quiet formation, they wander close to their parent star.
• The Third hypotheses suggest that hot Jupiters actually move closer to their parent's star due to gravity of other planets around the star, that drive their migration.