Gigantic 'Keystone Super-Earth' Found in Deep Space

CC BY 2.0 / NASA Universe / ExoplanetAn exoplanet is extremely hot and incredibly close
An exoplanet is extremely hot and incredibly close - Sputnik International, 1920, 24.11.2022
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The newly discovered planet's mass is nearly ten times that of Earth, and temperatures on its surface reach over 1,000 degrees Celsius.
A humongous rocky “super-Earth” exoplanet has been discovered in space, orbiting a distant star some 200 light years away via observations from NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite spacecraft.
The planet, designated TOI-1075b, has a mass ten times greater than that of Earth and the proximity to its host star results in temperatures at the planet’s surface reaching 1,050 degrees Celsius.
TOI-1075b appears to be one of the largest super-Earth type planets discovered so far, NASA noted, adding that the study of this planet might “yield new insight into the formation of rocky planets like our own”.
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Despite so called “super-Earths” appearing to be fairly common in the galaxy, there are none of them in the Solar System.
What makes TOI-1075b particularly intriguing for scientists is the fact that existing models suggest a planet of that size should have a thick atmosphere comprised of hydrogen and helium, but the available data about the planet’s orbit and composition suggest otherwise.
“That makes TOI-1075 b a 'keystone planet' – among only a few others so far with precise enough measurements of size and mass to help scientists fine-tune their models of planet formation,” NASA said on its website. “That, in turn, will help them predict just what kinds of atmospheres super-Earths and other planet types possess, or whether they have atmospheres at all.”
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