Title: “Variety of Exoplanet Sizes: Exploring the Enigmatic World Beyond Our Solar System”
Date: [Current Date]
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Astronomers have been captivated by the diversity of exoplanets for the past thirty years, observing an array of sizes within our galaxy, the Milky Way, and beyond. Up until 1992, Jupiter was widely regarded as the largest known planet, only to be overshadowed by numerous other discoveries since then.
Determining the size of a planet involves measurements of its width and mass. To this end, the scientific community has found that the largest exoplanets boast a planetary radius approximately twice that of Jupiter, often found orbiting in close proximity to their host stars. However, the relationship between a planet’s width and mass is not always straightforward due to variations in density.
Take, for example, the gas giants known as HAT-P-67 b and WASP-17 b, which possess radii twice the size of Jupiter but have lower masses. On the other hand, “Super-Earths,” rocky planets twice as wide as our humble Earth, tend to have a lesser mass than their gas giant counterparts.
At the upper end of the scale, the most massive planets currently known, like HD 39091 b, weigh approximately 13 times the mass of Jupiter. Scientists speculate that planets are unlikely to grow much larger than these super-Jupiters, as surpassing this limit would push them into the realm of brown dwarfs.
Brown dwarfs are objects heavier than super-Jupiters but still lacking the necessary mass for ordinary hydrogen fusion to occur at their cores. These celestial objects are believed to have an upper mass limit of 14 times that of Jupiter, serving as a distinguishing threshold between planets and brown dwarfs.
Interestingly, the largest known brown dwarf, dubbed SDSS J0104+1535, weighs a staggering 90 times more than Jupiter, yet surprisingly possesses a smaller radius. Consequently, it appears that despite their immense mass, the most massive brown dwarfs could actually be smaller than the largest known planet within our solar system.
Unveiling the mysteries of exoplanet sizes is an ongoing endeavor for astronomers. As technology continues to advance and observational techniques improve, scientists eagerly anticipate new and thrilling discoveries beyond our own celestial backyard.
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