What is a hot jupiter?
"Hot Jupiter" is a term used by astronomers to designate massive extrasolar gas giants-to-measure or larger than Jupiter-to orbit within about 0.05 AU (astronomical units or distances) of their home star, about one eighth between Mercury and the Sun, or less than 9 million kilometers (6 million kilometers). For such nearby distances from their Sun, these planets may have a surface temperature of 1300 degrees F (700 ° C) or higher, leading to a wind of up to 6,000 mph (9,600 km / h). Confirmed extrasolar planets as the status of hot Jupiter includes HD 189733 B (63 light -years distant), HD 209458 B ("Osiris", 150 light -years away) and 51 Pegasi B ("Bellerophon", 50 Light Small, Prototype Hot Jupiter and the first planet).
Like other planets, such as rocky planets and gas giants, Hot Jupiter planets have several common properties. First they have a high chance of tranding their star, that meansOh, passing in front of her, which makes it easier to observe from the perspective of astronomers on Earth. This transit is observed as a momentary and systematic fluctuation in the stellar output.
Second, because the hot planets of Jupiter are so intensely hot, their density is lower and their size is greater than it would be different if they were placed further as our own planet Jupiter. This means that, unlike the country that has an accurate atmosphere, hot jupiters have a fine atmosphere that gradually disappears rather than at a sharp border. This can make it difficult to determine their size from transit data.
Hot Jupiter Planets have two more common features: probably formations much further away from their stars than they are currently, and low eccentricity of the orbit. Like our Jupiter, these planets have been formed further from their star where there were more available things and slowly migrated in because ofUnstable orbital current over billions of years. Their location near their stars is one of the main reasons why it is easier to see - large planets placed far from their stars are harder to detect because they rarely carry their home star.
Hot Jupiters also have low eccentricity, which means that their orbit is highly circular. In addition, they are locked to their home star, which means that one face of the planet is experiencing an eternal day and the other eternal night. These temperature differentials create huge winds that distribute part of the heat from the day side to the night side.
Although we have found only a few hot jupiters so far, many astronomers suspect that we will discover dozens more in the coming decades, because our astronomical equipment is becoming more sensitive.