_(weic2206b).jpeg) | |
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Hellier et al. (WASP) |
| Discovery date | October 2013 |
| Transit | |
| Orbital characteristics[2] | |
| 0.0454±0.0013 AU | |
| Eccentricity | <0.11 |
| 3.4252602(27) d | |
| Inclination | 85.60°±0.20° |
| Semi-amplitude | 64.0+5.3 −4.8 m/s |
| Physical characteristics[2] | |
| 1.200±0.060 RJ | |
| Mass | 0.490+0.049 −0.047 MJ |
Meandensity | 0.352+0.068 −0.059 g/cm3 |
| Temperature | 1285K[1] |
WASP-96b is agas giantexoplanet. Its mass is 0.48 timesthat of Jupiter. It is 0.0453AU from theclass GstarWASP-96, which it orbits every 3.4 days. It is about 1,140light-years away from Earth, in the constellationPhoenix. It was discovered in 2013 by theWide Angle Search for Planets (WASP).
WASP-96b orbits its Sun-like star WASP-96 every 3.4 Earth days at a distance just one-ninth of the distance between Mercury and theSun.[3]
The hot-Jupiter exoplanet was found via thetransiting method by Coel Hellier et.al. in 2013 as part of the WASP-South survey.[1]
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WASP-96b's spectrum was one of the images featured in the initial science release from theJames Webb Space Telescope in July 2022.[4] The spectrum confirmed the presence ofwater, as well as providing evidence for "clouds and hazes" within the planet's atmosphere.[3] Prior to this discovery, WASP-96b was thought to be free ofclouds.[5][6]
While the light curve released confirms properties of the planet that had already been determined from other observations – the existence, size, and orbit of the planet – the transmission spectrum revealed previously hidden details of the atmosphere: the unambiguous signature of water, indications of haze, and evidence of clouds that were suspected based on prior observations.[7]
A study in 2023 measured the abundance of certain chemical species in the atmosphere of WASP-96b as seen in the table below.[8] Models of the atmosphere with patchy clouds and hazes best describes the observations through theJames Webb Space Telescope.[8]
| Chemical Species[8] | log(VMR)[8] | Concentration |
|---|---|---|
| Water vapor | -3.59+0.35 −0.35 | 257 ppm |
| Carbon monoxide | -3.25+0.91 −5.06 | 562 ppm |
| Carbon dioxide | -4.38+0.47 −0.57 | 41.7 ppm |
| Sodium | -6.85+2.48 −3.10 | 141 ppb |
| Potassium | -8.04+1.22 −1.71 | 9.12 ppb |
Media related toWASP-96 b at Wikimedia Commons
