MAY 07, 2018

Everything We Know About Hot Jupiter-Like Exoplanets

WRITTEN BY: Anthony Bouchard

There are so many exoplanets out there that it's difficult to keep track of them all, but a significant amount of them are what astronomers refer to as 'Hot Jupiters.'

Just as the name implies, these 'Hot Jupiters' are essentially Jupiter-like exoplanets with incredibly high temperatures, and they vary in size and composition.

Despite minor variances between Jupiter and these 'Hot Jupiters," some of the things that stick out to astronomers most include how they're generally more massive than Jupiter and how most of them orbit their host star very tightly.

Kelt 9b, for example, reaches scorching hot temperatures above 7,800ยบ Fahrenheit, which is more than nine times hotter than Venus - the hottest planet in our solar system.

Astronomers think that many 'Hot Jupiter'-like exoplanets form far away from their host star and then gradually migrate inward over time, but it's challenging to prove such a theory given that it would happen over thousands or millions of years.

We still have a lot to learn about 'Hot Jupiters,' but astronomers study them day in and day out. Hopefully, we'll better understand them as space exploration technology advances.