HD 189773b: The Blue Planet that Rains Glass

HD 189773b

The planet named as HD 189773b looks cosy and Earth-like. Doesn't it? However, you would not like to live there. Firstly, the surface temperature there is 1,000°C (1,832°F) and secondly, it rains glass, sideways, at the speed of 4000 mph.

In space terms, this planet not far from Earth. It is actually a mere 63 light years (370,353,398,510,567 miles) away . So that is why Hubble and other telescopes that are orbiting Earth can see it in so much details. On October 5th 2005, an astronomer in France found this planet orbiting the star HD 189733a (note that our sun is also a star). It orbits the star at a speed of 341,000 mph (549,000 kph). In comparison, our Earth's average orbiting speed is 67,000mph(107,200 kph). This planet has a mass that is 13% more than the mass of Jupiter (which is the largest planet in our solar system and is made of gas). This makes it a hot Jupiter (which means it is a hot gas planet about the same size of Jupiter) and destroy almost all prospects of extra-terrestrial life. Every year on HD 189773b is equivalent to 2.2 Earth days because it orbits its star very closely.


A graph of the visible-light colours of planets 
including HD 189733b

On March 2010 it was found out that this planet is evaporating at a rate of 1,000,000,000 to 100,000,000,000 grams every second. In July (which, by the way is the month I was born in :-)) this year, NASA also found out that this planet blocks three times more X-rays than visible light.  

The blue colour of the planet is thought to have come from silicate particles which scatter blue lights. These particles, which are found in the planets atmosphere, then condense into glass due to very hgih temperature. That is why it rains glass.

Conclusion: It is very unusual to find a planet like this. However there is not a lot of interesting stuff about this planet because no extra-terrestrial life can survive there. I give it a 7/10



Image Credit:






HD 189773b: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AHD_189733_b_deep_blue_dot.jpg: 
By NASA, ESA, M. Kornmesser [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Visible-light Colours of Planets: The colour of HD 189733b compared to our Solar system. Credit: NASA [This file is in public domain because it was solely created by NASA. NASA copyright states that "NASA material is not pretected by copyright unless stated"]