TrES-2b, the Blackest Planet We've Ever Seen David A. Aguilar (CfA)
I guess we now have Minority Planets................
Posted on 08/12/2011 1:25:13 PM PDT by Red Badger
Kepler has found the darkest known planet in universe--a Jupiter-sized exoplanet some 750 light-years away that is so black that it reflects just one percent of the light that reaches it. TrES-2b is so black that it’s darker than coal, or any other planet or moon that we’ve yet discovered. It’s less reflective than black acrylic paint. To summarize: it’s really, really black.
But TrES-2b is not completely black. It emits an extremely faint red glow, like that of a hot ember. And it turns out that heat is the main culprit behind this darkest of dark planets. TrES-2b orbits its star at a distance of just 3 million miles (by comparison, we’re about 93 million miles from our sun), which leads to surface temperatures on TrES-2b of more than 1,800 degrees.
That’s too hot for the formation of ammonia clouds that would reflect some of that incoming radiation as they do on Jupiter. Rather, TrES-2b’s atmosphere is made up of things like vaporized sodium, potassium, and titanium oxide--things that actually compound the problem by absorbing heat. But even these don’t fully explain the planet’s extreme blackness, which is still puzzling astronomers. There's some kind of strange chemistry going on out there that even Kepler can't see.
TrES-2b, the Blackest Planet We've Ever Seen David A. Aguilar (CfA)
I guess we now have Minority Planets................
Popcorn.
Must get popcorn.
Planet Obama
Ray Nagin is running for mayor there.
That's how you do it ~ get some protection, move in closer, ......
The 5th Element
IBTTRK
(In Before The ‘That’s Racist’ Kid)
I’ve known people like this as well. Because my light shines so rawly and intensely, I believe I attract ‘em. Thank God I a have stable, renewable source :-D.
Just Damn? I thought this thread was about Detroit?
Global warming alert.
Planet Kolob?
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Must have a lotta SUV’s there................
Wouldn’t it have to be a half-white/half-black planet?
Geidi Prime?........................
Is it this black? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiCB2isZcRM
My little three year old was looking at that picture and he kept saying “Star Wars”, I think he meant the death star!
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