How does WASP-12b compare to Jupiter?
It may be a hot Jupiter, but there are some differences to the
planetary king
WASP-12b
More enormous WASP-12b is 80
per cent larger than Jupiter, with a radius of 125,140 km
(77,758 miles).
Tight-knit orbit
WASP-12b orbits 3,440,000 kilometres (2,140,000 miles) from its stellar host, less than half a per
cent of Jupiter’s more-distant orbit.
Losing its mass
The host star is pulling material off WASP-12b at a rate of ten millionths of Jupiter’s mass
per year.
Reflecting barely any light
With an incredible
low albedo of 0.064, this means that 94 per cent of the visible light
is absorbed.
Scorching temperatures
JUPITER
King of the Solar System Jupiter is our Solar System’s biggest planet, with a radius of 69,911 kilometres (43,440 miles).
Far-flung world
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun, it sits five times further away from the Sun than Earth does.
Freezing clouds
Jupiter’s cloud temperature is at a freezing cold minus 145 degrees Celsius (minus 229 degrees Fahrenheit).
Keeping its mass
As Jupiter sits incredibly far away from the Sun, it is not losing any mass due to a low intensity gravitational pull.
Reflective giant
Jupiter has an albedo of 0.343, which is five times more reflective than WASP-12b.