1. Home
  2. Space
  3. News

Intriguing exoplanet could be entirely covered in ocean

By

Astronomers have discovered an intriguing exoplanet that could be entirely covered in water. The potential ocean world is called TOI-1452 b, located around 100 light-years away in the constellation of Draco.

The planet was discovered by an international team using data from NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, or TESS, and is a type of planet called a super-Earth which is somewhat larger and heavier than Earth. It is in its host star’s habitable zone, meaning it is the right distance from the star for liquid water to exist on its surface.

Artistic rendition of the exoplanet TOI-1452 b, a small planet that may be entirely covered in a deep ocean. Benoit Gougeon, Université de Montréal

The clues that this could be an ocean world are related to the planet’s radius, mass, and density. Although Earth has 70% of its surface covered by ocean, this water makes up less than 1% of our planet’s mass. But the planet TOI-1452 b has a density that suggests much of its mass, up to 30%, could be made up of lighter components like water.

Recommended Videos

“TOI-1452 b is one of the best candidates for an ocean planet that we have found to date,” explained lead researcher Charles Cadieux in a statement. “Its radius and mass suggest a much lower density than what one would expect for a planet that is basically made up of metal and rock, like Earth.”

Artistic representation of the surface of TOI-1452 b, which could be an “ocean planet”, i.e. a planet entirely covered by a thick layer of liquid water. Benoit Gougeon, Université de Montréal

This makes the planet potentially similar to some moons in our solar system like Jupiter’s moons Ganymede and Callisto, or Saturn’s moons Titan and Enceladus, which are thought to host liquid oceans. However, the oceans on these moons are hidden beneath thick crusts of ice because they are so far from the sun.

Researchers are keen to study TOI-1452 b in more depth to see if it really is covered in a deep ocean, or whether there is another explanation for its size and density like being a very large rock with no atmosphere. They are hoping to schedule further observations of the planet using the James Webb Space Telescope.

“Our observations with the Webb Telescope will be essential to better understanding TOI-1452 b,” said another of the researchers, René Doyon, who is also the ​​Principal Investigator of Webb’s NIRISS instrument. “As soon as we can, we will book time on the Webb to observe this strange and wonderful world.”

The research is published in The Astronomical Journal.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Georgina Torbet
Space Writer
Georgina is the Digital Trends space writer, covering human space exploration, planetary science, and cosmology. She…
James Webb photographs two potential exoplanets orbiting white dwarfs

Even though scientists have now discovered more than 5,000 exoplanets, or planets outside our solar system, it's a rare thing that any telescope can take an image of one of these planets. That's because they are so small and dim compared to the stars that they orbit around that it's easier to detect their presence based on their effects on the star rather than them being detected directly.

However, thanks to its exceptional sensitivity, the James Webb Space Telescope was recently able to image two potential exoplanets orbiting around small, cold cores of dead stars called white dwarfs directly.

Read more
See 19 gorgeous face-on spiral galaxies in new James Webb data

A stunning new set of images from the James Webb Space Telescope illustrates the variety of forms that exist within spiral galaxies like our Milky Way. The collection of 19 images shows a selection of spiral galaxies seen from face-on in the near-infrared and mid-infrared wavelengths, highlighting the similarities and differences that exist across these majestic celestial objects.

“Webb’s new images are extraordinary,” said Janice Lee of the Space Telescope Science Institute, in a statement. “They’re mind-blowing even for researchers who have studied these same galaxies for decades. Bubbles and filaments are resolved down to the smallest scales ever observed, and tell a story about the star formation cycle.”

Read more
Small exoplanet could be hot and steamy according to Hubble

One of the big topics in exoplanet research right now is not just finding exoplanets but also looking at their atmospheres. Tools like the James Webb Space Telescope are designed to allow researchers to look at the light coming from distant stars and see how it is filtered as it passes by exoplanets, allowing them to learn about the composition of their atmospheres. But scientists are also using older telescopes like the Hubble Space Telescope for similar research -- and Hubble recently identified water vapor in an exoplanet atmosphere.

“This would be the first time that we can directly show through an atmospheric detection that these planets with water-rich atmospheres can actually exist around other stars,” said researcher Björn Benneke of the Université de Montréal in a statement. “This is an important step toward determining the prevalence and diversity of atmospheres on rocky planets."

Read more