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According to these observations, the planet is much hotter than previously thought during the period of its closest approach to the star.<\/p>\n
A planet unlike most hot Jupiters<\/p>\n
HD 80606 b belongs to a group of planets known as hot Jupiters.<\/p>\n
Hot Jupiters are giant gas planets like Jupiter<\/a>, but they orbit extremely close to their stars, giving them exceptionally high temperatures.<\/p>\n Most hot Jupiters follow relatively circular orbits. HD 80606 b does not.<\/p>\n Instead, the planet follows a highly elongated orbit that carries it far from its Sun-like star before sending it plunging back in.<\/p>\n This cycle repeats once every 111 days. At its closest approach, known as periastron<\/a>, the planet receives a tremendous amount of energy from its star.<\/p>\n \u201cHot Jupiters are already considered some of the most extreme exoplanets we know of, but even among that population, HD 80606 b is one of the most extreme,\u201d said Tiffany Kataria, the study\u2019s principal investigator at NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe typically think of hot Jupiters as hot gas giants sitting right next to their stars, but this planet\u2019s highly eccentric orbit creates a completely different beast.\u201d<\/p>\n Temperature jumps that surprised scientists<\/p>\n The James Webb Space Telescope observed HD 80606 b before, during, and after its closest encounter with its star. <\/p>\n The telescope\u2019s instruments revealed that the planet\u2019s temperature shoots upward by about 1,100 degrees Fahrenheit during this period.<\/p>\n That sudden heating can dramatically alter the planet\u2019s atmosphere. Previous studies have shown that rapid temperature changes can affect cloud formation and trigger shifts in atmospheric chemistry.<\/p>\n Researchers specifically used Webb\u2019s Mid-Infrared Instrument, known as MIRI, to track these changes. Infrared observations are especially useful because they allow scientists to measure heat and identify different molecules in a planet\u2019s atmosphere<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWebb has shown that the planet\u2019s increase in temperature was even more extreme than we anticipated based on Spitzer data,\u201d said Kataria.<\/p>\n Why this strange planet matters<\/p>\n Scientists are interested in HD 80606 b not only because it is unusual, but because it allows them to study several atmospheric conditions within a very short period.<\/p>\n Many exoplanets<\/a> require years of observations to understand how their atmospheres behave. HD 80606 b compresses a wide range of conditions into just a few hours as it swings close to its star.<\/p>\n Researchers said HD 80606 b is an ideal planet to study because of its unusual orbit. As it moves around its star, its temperature changes dramatically. Its atmospheric chemistry shifts just as quickly. <\/p>\n That lets scientists collect data under many different conditions in only a few hours. They can then use those findings to better understand other hot Jupiters and even more conventional exoplanets.<\/p>\n To study the atmosphere, researchers relied on spectroscopy<\/a>, a technique that breaks light into its component colors. Scientists use this method throughout astronomy because different chemicals leave distinct fingerprints in light.<\/p>\n Spectroscopy can reveal a planet\u2019s temperature, movement, chemical makeup, and other physical characteristics. It has become one of the most powerful tools for investigating worlds that are too distant to visit directly.<\/p>\n During the observation period, HD 80606 b also moved behind its star from Webb\u2019s point of view, creating what astronomers call a secondary eclipse. <\/p>\n Events like this help researchers separate the planet\u2019s light from the star\u2019s light and improve atmospheric measurements.<\/p>\n Building on years of work<\/p>\n The recent observations were not a quick project. Researchers spent years planning the timing because the planet\u2019s unusual orbit and Webb\u2019s viewing constraints made scheduling difficult.<\/p>\n The work also builds on earlier observations from NASA\u2019s Spitzer Space Telescope, which retired in 2020. Spitzer first revealed that HD 80606 b was an especially promising target for infrared studies.<\/p>\n The planet even earned the nickname \u201croasted exoplanet\u201d because of its extreme heating<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cSpitzer did amazing work on this exoplanet,\u201d said Ryan Challener, co-author and research associate at the Cornell Center for Astrophysics and Planetary Science.<\/a> \u201cNow, Webb is building on that legacy by enabling us to drill down and distinguish specific chemical signatures like methane and carbon dioxide, which is just amazing progress.\u201d<\/p>\n Researchers are still analyzing the enormous amount of information collected by Webb. The early results show a world pushed to remarkable limits, and scientists believe the dataset may reveal much more about how giant planets evolve under intense conditions.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s so much to learn from this one dataset. We really are just getting started deciphering what Webb has to tell us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2014\u2013<\/p>\n Like what you read? Subscribe to our newsletter<\/a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.\u00a0<\/p>\n Check us out on EarthSnap<\/a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls<\/a> and Earth.com.<\/p>\n \u2014\u2013<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There is a planet called HD 80606 b, which is home to some of the most extreme changes…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":769823,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[49,48,66,306],"class_list":["post-769822","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-space","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-science","tag-space"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/769822","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=769822"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/769822\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/769823"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=769822"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=769822"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=769822"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"This](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/exoplanet_HD-80606-b_roasted-hot_NASA_1s.webp\")
<\/a>This artist\u2019s concept shows exoplanet HD 80606 b being \u201croasted\u201d as its orbit approaches periastron, the point at which it is closest to its host star, which is similar to our Sun. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Joseph Olmsted (STScI). Click image to enlarge.Reading a planet through light<\/p>\n