Astronomers Stunned by Enormous Celestial Object Defying Planetary Formation Theories

Astronomers at Penn State University have discovered a planet, LHS 3154b, that is more than 13 times the size of Earth and orbits an ultracool dwarf star, challenging existing theories on planetary formation. The planet's mass ratio to its host star is greater than 100 times that of Earth and the Sun, making it the largest planet ever discovered orbiting an ultracool dwarf star. The discovery was made using the Habitable Zone Planet Finder (HPF), a specialized spectrograph developed by the researchers. The finding raises questions about how planets and stars form and highlights the limitations of current understanding in the field.