This is an illustration of the hypothetical appearance of the exoplanet GJ 1214b, which is known as a "super-Earth" type planet because it is slightly more than six Earth masses. Spectroscopic observations with NASA's Hubble Space Telescope provide evidence of high clouds blanketing the planet. These clouds hide any information about the composition and behavior of the world's lower atmosphere and surface. The composition of the clouds is unknown. GJ1214b is located 40 light-years from Earth, in the constellation Ophiuchus.
Credits
Artwork: NASA, ESA, and G. Bacon (STScI);Science: NASA, ESA, L. Kreidberg and J. Bean (University of Chicago), and H. Knutson (California Institute of Technology)
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | GJ 1214b |
| Object Description | Extrasolar Planet |
| R.A. Position | 17h 15m 18.93s |
| Dec. Position | 04° 57' 49.71" |
| Constellation | Ophiuchus |
| Distance | 40 light-years (12.3 parsecs) |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | The Hubble data are from proposal : J. Bean (University of Chicago), J.-M. Desert (California Institute of Technology), S. Seager (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), D. Deming (University of Maryland), B. Benneke (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Z. Berta-Thompson (Harvard University), K. Stevenson (University of Chicago), and D. Homeier (Lyon Centre for Astrophysics Research). The science team includes: L. Kreidberg and J. Bean (University of Chicago), J.-M. Desert (California Institute of Technology), B. Benneke (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), D. Deming (University of Maryland), K. Stevenson (University of Chicago), S. Seager (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Z. Berta-Thompson (Harvard University), A. Seifahrt (University of Chicago), and D. Homeier (Lyon Centre for Astrophysics Research). |
| Instrument | HST>WFC3 |
| Exposure Dates | September 27, 2012 - August 4, 2013 |
| Filters | Grim: G141 |
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | A name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object. |
| Object Description | The type of astronomical object. |
| R.A. Position | Right ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Dec. Position | Declination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Constellation | One of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears. |
| Distance | The physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs. |
| Dimensions | The physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description |
|
| Instrument | The science instrument used to produce the data. |
| Exposure Dates | The date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time. |
| Filters | The camera filters that were used in the science observations. |
| About The Image | |
| Image Credit | The primary individuals and institutions responsible for the content. |
| Publication Date | The date and time the release content became public. |
| Color Info | A brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented. |
| Orientation | The rotation of the image on the sky with respect to the north pole of the celestial sphere. |
