Astronomy:Super-Jupiter
A super-Jupiter is a gas giant exoplanet that is more massive than the planet Jupiter. For example, companions at the planet–brown dwarf borderline have been called super-Jupiters, such as around the star Kappa Andromedae.[1]
By 2011 there were 180 known super-Jupiters, some hot, some cold.[2] Even though they are more massive than Jupiter, they remain about the same size as Jupiter up to 80 Jupiter masses.[2] This means that their surface gravity and density go up proportionally to their mass.[2] The increased mass compresses the planet due to gravity, thus keeping it from being larger.[2] In comparison, planets somewhat lighter than Jupiter can be larger, so-called "puffy planets" (gas giants with a large diameter but low density).[3] An example of this may be the exoplanet HAT-P-1b with about half the mass of Jupiter but about 1.38 times larger diameter.[3]
CoRoT-3b, with a mass around 22 Jupiter masses,[4] is predicted to have an average density of 26.4 g/cm3, greater than osmium (22.6 g/cm3), the densest natural element under standard conditions. Extreme compression of matter inside it causes the high density, because it is likely composed mainly of hydrogen.[5] The surface gravity is also high, over 50 times that of Earth.[4]
In 2012, the super-Jupiter Kappa Andromedae b was imaged around the star Kappa Andromedae,[1] orbiting it about 1.8 times the distance at which Neptune orbits the Sun.[6]
See also
- Extrasolar planet
- Ice giant
- Kepler-1704b
- List of planet types
- Red dwarf
- Super-Earth
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Astronomers Directly Image Massive Star's 'Super-Jupiter'". NASA. 19 November 2012. http://www.nasa.gov/topics/universe/features/super-jupiter.html.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Kitchin, Chris (2012). Exoplanets: Finding, Exploring, and Understanding Alien Worlds. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 167–168. ISBN 978-1-4614-0644-0. https://books.google.com/books?id=HaM6CpDYE3oC&pg=PA168.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Chang, Kenneth (2010-11-11). "Puzzling Puffy Planet, Less Dense Than Cork, Is Discovered". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/15/science/space/15planet.html.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Deleuil, M.; Deeg, H. J.; Alonso, R.; Bouchy, F.; Rouan, D.; Auvergne, M.; Baglin, A.; Aigrain, S. et al. (2008). "Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission. VI. CoRoT-Exo-3b: the first secure inhabitant of the brown-dwarf desert". Astronomy and Astrophysics 491 (3): 889–897. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:200810625. Bibcode: 2008A&A...491..889D.
- ↑ Baraffe, I.; Chabrier, G.; Barman, T. S.; Allard, F.; Hauschildt, P. H. (2003). "Evolutionary models for cool brown dwarfs and extrasolar giant planets. The case of HD 209458". Astronomy and Astrophysics 402 (2): 701–712. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20030252. Bibcode: 2003A&A...402..701B.
- ↑ "Image of the 'super-Jupiter' Kappa Andromedae b". NASA/JPL. 19 November 2012. http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov/image/112.
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