55 Cancri b (abbreviated 55 Cnc b), occasionally designated 55 Cancri Ab (to distinguish it from the
star
A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...
55 Cancri B), also named Galileo, is an
exoplanet
An exoplanet or extrasolar planet is a planet outside the Solar System. The first possible evidence of an exoplanet was noted in 1917 but was not recognized as such. The first confirmation of detection occurred in 1992. A different planet, init ...
orbiting the
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...
-like star
55 Cancri A every 14.65
day
A day is the time period of a full rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours, 1440 minutes, or 86,400 seconds. In everyday life, the word "day" often refers to a solar day, which is the length between two so ...
s. It is the second planet in order of distance from its star, and is an example of a
hot Jupiter
Hot Jupiters (sometimes called hot Saturns) are a class of gas giant exoplanets that are inferred to be physically similar to Jupiter but that have very short orbital periods (). The close proximity to their stars and high surface-atmosphere temp ...
, or possibly rather "warm Jupiter".
In July 2014 the
International Astronomical Union
The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreac ...
launched
NameExoWorlds
NameExoWorlds (also known as IAU NameExoWorlds) is the name of various projects managed by the International Astronomical Union (I.A.U.) to encourage names to be submitted for astronomical objects, which would later be considered for official ad ...
, a process for giving proper names to certain exoplanets and their host stars. The process involved public nomination and voting for the new names. In December 2015, the IAU announced the winning name was Galileo for this planet. The winning name was submitted by the Royal Netherlands Association for Meteorology and Astronomy of the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
. It honors early-17th century astronomer and physicist
Galileo Galilei
Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He was ...
.
Discovery
55 Cancri b was discovered in 1996 by
Geoffrey Marcy
Geoffrey William Marcy (born September 29, 1954) is an American astronomer. He was an early influence in the field of exoplanet detection, discovery, and characterization. Marcy was a professor of astronomy at the University of California, Berk ...
and
R. Paul Butler
Robert Paul Butler (born 1960) is an astronomer and staff scientist at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, D.C., who searches for extrasolar planets.
he and his team have discovered over half of the planets found orbiting nea ...
. It was the fourth known extrasolar planet, excluding
pulsar planet
Pulsar planets are planets that are found orbiting pulsars, or rapidly rotating neutron stars. The first such planets to be discovered were around a millisecond pulsar and were the first extrasolar planets to be confirmed as discovered.
History
...
s. It was discovered by detecting variations in its star's
radial velocity
The radial velocity or line-of-sight velocity, also known as radial speed or range rate, of a target with respect to an observer is the temporal rate of change, rate of change of the distance or Slant range, range between the two points. It is e ...
caused by the planet's
gravity
In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 1038 times weaker than the stro ...
. By making sensitive measurements of the
Doppler shift
The Doppler effect or Doppler shift (or simply Doppler, when in context) is the change in frequency of a wave in relation to an observer who is moving relative to the wave source. It is named after the Austrian physicist Christian Doppler, who d ...
of the
spectrum
A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors i ...
of 55 Cancri A, a 15-day periodicity was detected. The planet was announced in 1996, together with the planet of
Tau Boötis
Tau Boötis, Latinised from τ Boötis, is an F-type main-sequence star approximately 51 light-years away in the constellation of Boötes. It is a binary star system, with the secondary star being a red dwarf. As of 1999, an extrasolar ...
and the innermost planet of
Upsilon Andromedae
Upsilon Andromedae (υ Andromedae, abbreviated Upsilon And, υ And) is a binary star located 44 light-years from Earth in the constellation of Andromeda (constellation), Andromeda. The system consists of an F-type main-sequence star (desi ...
.
Even when this inner planet, with a
mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
at least 78% times that of
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but ...
was accounted for, the star still showed a drift in its radial velocity. This eventually led to the discovery of the outer planet
55 Cancri d in 2002.
Orbit and mass
55 Cancri b is in a short-period orbit, though not so extreme as that of the previously detected hot Jupiter
51 Pegasi b
51 Pegasi b, officially named Dimidium , and formerly unofficially dubbed Bellerophon , is an extrasolar planet approximately away in the constellation of Pegasus. It was the first exoplanet to be discovered orbiting a main-sequence star, the S ...
. The orbital period indicates that the planet is located close to a 1:3
mean motion
In orbital mechanics, mean motion (represented by ''n'') is the angular speed required for a body to complete one orbit, assuming constant speed in a circular orbit which completes in the same time as the variable speed, elliptical orbit of the ac ...
resonance
Resonance describes the phenomenon of increased amplitude that occurs when the frequency of an applied periodic force (or a Fourier component of it) is equal or close to a natural frequency of the system on which it acts. When an oscillatin ...
with
55 Cancri c
55 Cancri c (abbreviated 55 Cnc c), formally named Brahe (pronounced or ), is an extrasolar planet in an eccentric orbit around the Sun-like star 55 Cancri A, making one revolution every 44.34 days. It is the third known planet in order of ...
, however investigations of the planetary parameters in a Newtonian simulation indicate that while the orbital periods are close to this ratio, the planets are not actually in the resonance.
In 2012, b's upper atmosphere was observed transiting the star; so its inclination is about 85 degrees, coplanar with
55 Cancri e. This helped to constrain the mass of the planet but the inclination was too low to constrain its radius.
The mass is about 0.85 that of Jupiter.
Characteristics
55 Cancri b is a
gas giant
A gas giant is a giant planet composed mainly of hydrogen and helium. Gas giants are also called failed stars because they contain the same basic elements as a star. Jupiter and Saturn are the gas giants of the Solar System. The term "gas giant" ...
with no
solid
Solid is one of the State of matter#Four fundamental states, four fundamental states of matter (the others being liquid, gas, and Plasma (physics), plasma). The molecules in a solid are closely packed together and contain the least amount o ...
surface. The atmospheric transit has demonstrated
hydrogen
Hydrogen is the chemical element with the symbol H and atomic number 1. Hydrogen is the lightest element. At standard conditions hydrogen is a gas of diatomic molecules having the formula . It is colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, an ...
in the upper atmosphere.
That transit is so tangential, that properties such as its
radius
In classical geometry, a radius ( : radii) of a circle or sphere is any of the line segments from its center to its perimeter, and in more modern usage, it is also their length. The name comes from the latin ''radius'', meaning ray but also the ...
,
density
Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the substance's mass per unit of volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' can also be used. Mathematical ...
, and
temperature
Temperature is a physical quantity that expresses quantitatively the perceptions of hotness and coldness. Temperature is measured with a thermometer.
Thermometers are calibrated in various temperature scales that historically have relied o ...
are unknown. Assuming a composition similar to that of Jupiter and that its environment is close to
chemical equilibrium
In a chemical reaction, chemical equilibrium is the state in which both the reactants and products are present in concentrations which have no further tendency to change with time, so that there is no observable change in the properties of the sy ...
, 55 Cancri b's upper
atmosphere
An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A s ...
is predicted to be
cloud
In meteorology, a cloud is an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets, frozen crystals, or other particles suspended in the atmosphere of a planetary body or similar space. Water or various other chemicals may co ...
less with a
spectrum
A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors i ...
dominated by
alkali metal
The alkali metals consist of the chemical elements lithium (Li), sodium (Na), potassium (K),The symbols Na and K for sodium and potassium are derived from their Latin names, ''natrium'' and ''kalium''; these are still the origins of the names ...
absorption
Absorption may refer to:
Chemistry and biology
* Absorption (biology), digestion
**Absorption (small intestine)
*Absorption (chemistry), diffusion of particles of gas or liquid into liquid or solid materials
*Absorption (skin), a route by which ...
.
The atmosphere's transit indicates that it is slowly evaporating under the sun's heat. The evaporation is slower than that for previously studied (hotter) hot Jupiters.
[
The planet is unlikely to have large ]moons
A natural satellite is, in the most common usage, an astronomical body that orbits a planet, dwarf planet, or small Solar System body (or sometimes another natural satellite). Natural satellites are often colloquially referred to as ''moons'' ...
, since tidal forces
The tidal force is a gravitational effect that stretches a body along the line towards the center of mass of another body due to a gradient (difference in strength) in gravitational field from the other body; it is responsible for diverse phenom ...
would either eject them from orbit or destroy them on short timescales relative to the age of the system.
See also
* Appearance of extrasolar planets
An exoplanet or extrasolar planet is a planet outside the Solar System. The first possible evidence of an exoplanet was noted in 1917 but was not recognized as such. The first confirmation of detection occurred in 1992. A different planet, init ...
* Cancer (Chinese astronomy) According to traditional Chinese uranography, the modern constellation Cancer is located within the southern quadrant of the sky, which is symbolized as the Vermilion Bird of the South (南方朱雀, ''Nán Fāng Zhū Què'').
The name of the wes ...
* Lists of exoplanets
These are lists of exoplanets. Most of these were discovered by the Kepler space telescope. There are an additional 2,054 potential exoplanets from Kepler's first mission yet to be confirmed, as well as 978 from its "Second Light" mission and 4 ...
* Gliese 1132 b, Rocky exoplanet with a confirmed atmosphere.
* Mu Arae c
Mu Arae c, also known as HD 160691 c, formally named Dulcinea (pronounced or ), is an extrasolar planet orbiting the star Mu Arae of the constellation Ara. It was the first 'hot Neptune' or 'mega-Earth' to be discovered.
None of the four planets ...
, At constellation Ara
* Planetary system
A planetary system is a set of gravitationally
In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interacti ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:55 Cancri b
55 Cancri
Cancer (constellation)
Exoplanets discovered in 1996
Giant planets
Exoplanets detected by radial velocity
Transiting exoplanets
Exoplanets with proper names
Galileo Galilei
Hot Jupiters