"Fluffiest Planet Ever": Scientists Discover "Marshmallow World" In Deep Space
NDTV
The newly discovered exoplanet has a diameter of 150,000 kilometres, making it slightly bigger than our solar system's largest planet Jupiter.
Scientists are finding all sorts of weird worlds. They've now discovered a gas giant planet with the density of a marshmallow orbiting a cool red dwarf star located 580 light years from Earth. The planet, identified as TOI-3757 b, is the "fluffiest" ever found, according to the National Science Foundation's NOIRLab, which operates some of the telescopes used in the research.
As per a press release, the newly discovered exoplanet has a diameter of 150,000 kilometres, making it slightly bigger than our solar system's largest planet Jupiter. It orbits its host star once every 3.5 days. The research team calculated its average density as being 0.27 grams per cubic, which is about one-quarter the density of water - meaning it would float if placed in a giant bathtub filled with water.
Red Dwarfs are the smallest and dimmest stars that convert hydrogen into helium in their cores at a steady rate. Although they are much cooler than the sun, red dwarfs are known to be extremely active and launch powerful flares and as such make it rare for planets to form around them.
Also Read | NASA Sets Up Independent Scientific Team To Investigate UFO Sightings
