WASP-96b
{{Short description|Gas giant exoplanet targeted for spectroscopy}}
{{Infobox planet
| extrasolarplanet = yes
| name = WASP-96b
| image = File:Exoplanet WASP-96 b (NIRISS Transit Light Curve) (weic2206b).jpeg
| image_size =
| image_alt =
| caption = Light curve of star WASP-96 during transit of WASP-96b, taken by the James Webb Space Telescope
| apsis = astron
| discoverer = Hellier et al. (WASP)
| discovery_site =
| discovered = October 2013
| discovery_method = Transit
| alt_names =
| periastron =
| apoastron =
| semimajor = {{val|0.0454|0.0013|ul=AU}}
| avg_speed =
| eccentricity = <0.11
| period = {{val|3.4252602|(27)|ul=d}}
| synodic_period =
| inclination = {{val|85.60|0.20|u=deg}}
| angular_dist =
| long_periastron =
| time_periastron =
| semi-amplitude = {{val|64.0|5.3|4.8|ul=m/s}}
| star =
| mean_radius = {{val|1.200|0.060|ul=Jupiter radius}}
| surface_area =
| volume =
| density = {{val|0.352|0.068|0.059|ul=g/cm3}}
| mass = {{val|0.490|0.049|0.047|ul=Jupiter mass}}
| surface_grav =
| moment_of_inertia_factor =
| escape_velocity =
| albedo =
| single_temperature = 1285 K
}}
WASP-96b is a gas giant exoplanet. Its mass is 0.48 times that of Jupiter. It is 0.0453 AU from the class G star WASP-96, which it orbits every 3.4 days. It is about 1,140 light-years away from Earth, in the constellation Phoenix. It was discovered in 2013 by the Wide 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 the Sun.
The hot-Jupiter exoplanet was found via the transiting method by Coel Hellier et.al. in 2013 as part of the WASP-South survey.
Atmosphere
File:WASP-96b spectrum (JWST) mres.png
WASP-96b's spectrum was one of the images featured in the initial science release from the James Webb Space Telescope in July 2022.{{cite web |last=Cesari |first=Thaddeus |date=2022-07-11 |title=NASA Shares List of Cosmic Targets for Webb Telescope's First Images |url=https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2022/nasa-shares-list-of-cosmic-targets-for-webb-telescope-s-first-images |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220712050159/https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2022/nasa-shares-list-of-cosmic-targets-for-webb-telescope-s-first-images |archive-date=2022-07-12 |access-date=2022-07-12 |publisher=NASA}} The spectrum confirmed the presence of water, as well as providing evidence for "clouds and hazes" within the planet's atmosphere. Prior to this discovery, WASP-96b was thought to be free of clouds.{{Cite web |last=Jorgenson |first=Amber |date=2018-05-08 |title=WASP-96b: the cloudless exoplanet |url=https://astronomy.com/news/2018/05/the-cloudless-exoplanet |access-date=2022-07-08 |website=Astronomy.com |language=en}}{{citation |last1=McGruder |first1=Chima D. |title=ACCESS: Confirmation of a Clear Atmosphere for WASP-96b and a Comparison of Light Curve Detrending Techniques |journal=The Astronomical Journal |volume=164 |issue=4 |page=134 |year=2022 |arxiv=2207.03479 |bibcode=2022AJ....164..134M |doi=10.3847/1538-3881/ac7f2e |s2cid=250334756 |last2=López-Morales |first2=Mercedes |last3=Kirk |first3=James |last4=Espinoza |first4=Néstor |last5=Rackham |first5=Benjamin V. |last6=Alam |first6=Munazza K. |last7=Allen |first7=Natalie |last8=Nikolov |first8=Nikolay |last9=Weaver |first9=Ian C. |last10=Ortiz Ceballos |first10=Kevin |last11=Osip |first11=David J. |last12=Apai |first12=Dániel |last13=Jordán |first13=Andrés |last14=Fortney |first14=Jonathan J. |doi-access=free }}
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.{{citation |last1=Samra |first1=D. |title=Clouds form on the hot Saturn JWST ERO target WASP-96b |journal=Astronomy & Astrophysics |volume=669 |pages=A142 |year=2023 |arxiv=2211.00633 |bibcode=2023A&A...669A.142S |doi=10.1051/0004-6361/202244939 |s2cid=253244425 |last2=Helling |first2=Ch. |last3=Chubb |first3=K. L. |last4=Min |first4=M. |last5=Carone |first5=L. |last6=Schneider |first6=A. D.}}
A study in 2023 measured the abundance of certain chemical species in the atmosphere of WASP-96b as seen in the table below. Models of the atmosphere with patchy clouds and hazes best describes the observations through the James Webb Space Telescope.
| class="wikitable"
|+ !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 |
See also
References
{{reflist|refs=
{{cite journal |last1=Bonomo |first1=A. S. |last2=Desidera |first2=S. |display-authors=etal |date=June 2017 |title=The GAPS Programme with HARPS-N at TNG. XIV. Investigating giant planet migration history via improved eccentricity and mass determination for 231 transiting planets |journal=Astronomy & Astrophysics |volume=602 |issue= |pages=A107 |doi=10.1051/0004-6361/201629882 |arxiv=1704.00373 |bibcode=2017A&A...602A.107B |s2cid=118923163}}
}}
External links
{{commonscat-inline}}
{{Sky|00|04|11.1|-|47|21|38.3214}}{{Phoenix (constellation)}}
Category:Exoplanets discovered by WASP
Category:Transiting exoplanets