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Salt clouds discovered on iconic 'Pink Planet' as scientists finally get a good look at frosty orb
New York Post • • science
Key Points:
- Scientists at Northwestern University have discovered salt clouds in the atmosphere of the "Pink Planet" (GJ 504 b), a cold exoplanet located about 57 light-years from Earth, using data from the James Webb Space Telescope.
- The planet, first discovered in 2013, is one of the coldest celestial objects directly imaged and had previously been too faint for detailed study with ground-based instruments.
- Spectral analysis revealed a mixture of water vapor, methane, carbon dioxide, ammonia, and other molecules, but the atmospheric data only matched simulations when salt clouds were included.
- This finding is the first time salt clouds have been identified as critical to explaining a planetary spectrum and may aid in understanding other cold planets like Jupiter, which has ammonia ice clouds.
- Despite its nickname, researchers remain uncertain whether GJ 504 b qualifies definitively as a planet, but its unique atmospheric composition provides new insights into planetary atmospheres.
