Discovery of A New Planet K2-141b Sounds Like Star Wars’ Mustafar

 Recently, scientists discovered a new planet that sounds like the Star Wars’ small planet, Mustafar.

Mustafar is known for its lava flows, which were mined for valuable and unique minerals. The planet was also home to the Black Sun crime organization, whose headquarters was near the mining town. The lava planet is where Darth Vader lost his limbs to his master, Obi-Wan Kenobi.

According to a new study published by scientists of New York University, Indian Institute of Science Education, and McGill University in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society revealed details about the newest “lava planet.” The planet is very close to its host star. Hence, the temperature of the planet is very high such that it is composed of lava oceans.

Scientists have found that the weather cycle of the planet is a bit bizarre. It is an Earth-sized exoplanet named K2-141b. The ocean, atmosphere, and surface of the planet appear to have the same ingredients: rocks.

The lead author of the study Giang Nguyen shared in a news release that the study is the first prediction about the exoplanet’s weather detected from hundreds of lights years away with next-generation space telescopes like the James Webb Space Telescope.

When scientists further study its illumination pattern, they found that the planet experiences never-ending daylight in the two-third of its part. Due to the closeness of the planet to its star, the force of gravity locks the planet in its place; hence K2-141b does not rotate and revolve. Therefore, the planet faces the star always on the same side.

The hottest part of the planet reaches a temperature of 5,400 degrees Fahrenheit (2,982.22 degrees Celsius). The temperature can melt the rocks and even vaporize them into fumes, creating an inhospitable atmosphere. In contrast, the other part of the planet is into long-lasting darkness. The temperature in that area reaches negative 328 degrees Fahrenheit (164.44 degrees Celsius).

The co-author of the study Nicolas Cowan said that the atmosphere extends a little beyond the magma ocean’s shore, making it easy for them to study the spot through the telescope.

Imagine Earth’s water cycle; the water evaporates and rises above; it condenses and returns to the surface in the form of rain, snow, or hail. Now, try to apply the same phenomenon in K2-141b, but the planet has rocks instead of water.

The silicon dioxide, silicon monoxide, and sodium evaporate into mineral vapor and are carried to the planet’s coldest side by a supersonic wind speed of 3,100 miles per hour. So in replacement of rain and snow, the dark side experiences rain of rocks, which pours the 60-mile-deep magma ocean. The ocean then flows to the bright side to complete the cycle.

However, K2-141b does not have a stable cycle, shared by one of the scientists. The magma’s flow from the night side to the brighter side is much slower. The researchers predict that the atmosphere and the surface of the planet will change over the period as all rocky planets, even our Earth, started that way. Our world was also a molten world that eventually cooled down and solidified. The lava planets give a rare glimpse of planetary evolution.

Many Star Wars fans would find a similarity between the lava planet, Mustafar and K2-141b. The atmospheric condition and the flowing lava ocean is common in both.

Mustafar is the starting and end of many things. Many necessary sequences took place on the lava planet. It starts with the evil Darth Vader. Vader terrorizes the galaxy later. It is also a mark of the end of Jedi Anakin Skywalker, Anakin’s great love, Padme Amidala, and the Clone Wars.

The description of the newly founded planet sounds just like Musfatar. However, this shows the crazy fan following the Star Wars franchise that the fans have immediately drawn the comparison of the latest discovered planet from Mustafar.

Star Wars is famous for many reasons, for its characters and interesting, diverse planets. Hopefully, nobody has to ever worry about having the high ground on the lava planet K2-141b. However, researchers want to know more about the planet and how terrestrial tools would look like on the planet. The planet has been studied by the Spitzer Space Telescope and NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope. Now NASA is planning to study the planet with James Webb Space Telescope in the upcoming year 2021.

To know more about the research, you can read the published paper in the Royal Astronomical Society Monthly Notices.

Everleig is a Blog expert and has been working in the technology industry since 2003. As a technical expert, Everleig has written technical blogs, manuals, white papers, and reviews for many websites such as  4yellowpaes.com

Source:  Planet K2-141b