A Planet That Rains Rubies
Have you ever heard of a planet that rains rubies?
Yes, you heard that right! Wasp-121b is an exoplanet located 900 light-years away from Earth that is believed to rain rubies. The discovery of this planet has taken the astronomical world by storm and has given scientists a glimpse into the strange and wondrous possibilities of the universe. If you are wondering what I geek out on in my spare time – this is it!
Wasp-121b is a hot Jupiter, a giant gas planet that orbits extremely close to its parent star. It is located in the constellation Puppis and was discovered by the WASP (Wide Area Search for Planets) project. It is an extremely hot planet with temperatures reaching up to 2500°C, making it one of the hottest exoplanets ever discovered.
The reason for this high temperature is due to the close proximity of the planet to its star, causing it to receive intense radiation from the star. This radiation causes the atmosphere of the planet to become so hot that it vaporizes any solid material, including rubies. The vaporized rubies are then carried away by strong winds, which cause the rubies to condense and fall back to the surface as rain.
The presence of rubies on Wasp-121b is a result of the high pressure and temperature in the planet's atmosphere. These conditions are similar to those found in the Earth's mantle. It is believed that the mantle of Wasp-121b contains high concentrations of aluminum oxide, which is the main component of rubies.
The discovery of Wasp-121b has significant implications for our understanding of the universe. It sure makes me wonder…what else is out there?
