PARIS: Astronomers have observed evidence of extreme atmospheric changes on the exoplanet known as 55 Cancri e, and they believe the wild weather may be due to high levels of volcanic activity.
55 Cancri e is considered a “super-Earth,” as it is a rocky planet but has twice the diameter of Earth and eight times the mass. It orbits a Sun-like star 40 light-years away, and is known to astronomers as the “diamond planet” – a carbon-rich planet possibly covered in hydrocarbons.
According to Discovery News, the team used data from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope to observe the planet’s strange atmospheric behavior. The data indicated a three-fold change in temperature on the planet’s surface, causing the researchers to question the previously assumed nature of the planet.
“This is the first time we’ve seen such drastic changes in light emitted from an exoplanet, which is particularly remarkable for a super-Earth,” Nikku Madhusudhan of Cambridge’s Institute of Astronomy said in a statement. “No signature of thermal emissions or surface activity has ever been detected for any other super-Earth to date.”
The team measured a temperature swing of 1800-4900 degrees Fahrenheit on the star-facing side of the planet, which the team believes indicates a mostly molten planetary surface with frequent and violent volcanic eruptions.
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