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[Background] [HD 189733b] [HD 149026b]
[Transit]

HD 189733b is a jupiter-sized warm and windy gas giant

9th May 2007
  • HD 189733b is the closest known transiting planet
  • It passes in front of its star every 2.2 days
  • It is slightly heavier than Jupiter
  • One side permanently faces the star

  • The SST has mapped the exoplanet's surface temperature
  • The range is surprisingly mild: 650°C on the dark side to 930°C on the sunlit side

  • A wind system must spread the heat from the sunlit side to the dark side
  • The winds must rage across the surface at up to 9,600 kilometers per hour
  • A warm spot 30 degrees east of the point directly below the star indicates that the winds blow eastward

    Hot Jupiter exoplanets are blasted by 20,000 times more energy per second than Jupiter. Now we know how HD 189733b deals with that energy.

More Info

Artist's Impression

Source: Spitzer Space Telescope Press Release 9th May 2007