"Discovery of Giant Alien World with Dual Suns and Sandstorm"

1 min read
Source: ScienceAlert
"Discovery of Giant Alien World with Dual Suns and Sandstorm"
Photo: ScienceAlert
TL;DR Summary

Astronomers have used the James Webb Space Telescope to obtain the most high-fidelity observations yet of an alien world named VHS 1256 b, which is just 70 light-years from Earth. The planetary-mass object has a 10,000-year orbit around not one but two stars and is ravaged by a constant, tempestuous storm of sand. The team identified many of the components of VHS 1256 b's atmosphere, including unambiguous detections of methane, carbon monoxide, and water, with additional evidence of carbon dioxide. Its mass straddles the boundary between giant planets and brown dwarfs, and its precise nature is unknown.

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