Scientists have discovered a planet “flattened” by its neighbors, glowing with molten lava.

A unique planet, the conditions on which are so extreme that its existence seemed impossible, was discovered by scientists from the University of California at Riverside (USA).

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The newly discovered planet, called TOI-6713.01, is covered with so many active volcanoes that if you look at it from afar, it takes on a fiery, scarlet hue, the university’s press service reports.

It was one of those moments of discovery where you think, “Wow, this is amazing that this could actually exist,” said Stephen Kane, an astrophysicist at the university.

The planet was discovered in a star system located approximately 66 light years from Earth called HD 104067:

• it was already known that there was a giant planet in it;
• NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) spacecraft recently discovered evidence of a rocky planet in the system;
• After analyzing the data, scientists unexpectedly discovered another planet in HD 104067, bringing the total number of planets known in this system to three.

TOI-6713.01 is a rocky planet similar to Earth, but 30% larger. However, unlike Earth, it has more in common with Io, Jupiter’s rocky inner moon and the most volcanically active body in our solar system.

It’s a terrestrial planet that I would describe as “Io on steroids,” Kane said. “She finds herself in a situation where she is constantly exploding with volcanoes.” In the optical wavelength range, one could see a red-hot planet with a molten lava surface.

Scientists estimate that the surface temperature of planet TOI-6713.01 will be 2600 degrees Kelvin (more than 2300 degrees Celsius), which is hotter than some stars.

As in the case of Io, the reason for such significant volcanic activity of TOI-6713.01 was gravitational forces. Io is located very close to Jupiter and Jupiter’s other moons cause Io to move in an elliptical or “eccentric” orbit around the planet, which itself has a very strong gravitational pull.

If there were no other satellites, Io would move in a circular orbit around the planet, and the surface would be calm. Jupiter’s gravity compresses Io so much that volcanic eruptions constantly occur on it, Kane noted.

Likewise, there are two planets in the HD 104067 system that are further away from the star than this newly discovered planet. These outer planets also force the inner rocky planet into an eccentric orbit around the star, which compresses it as it rotates.

This effect is called tidal energy, a term used to describe the gravitational effect of one body on another. On Earth, tides are mostly the result of the moon’s gravity pulling on our oceans, the article notes.

Source: Racurs

David

I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.