James Webb Telescope Maps Alien Planet's Atmosphere in 3D

Scientists have successfully created the first three-dimensional map of an alien planet's atmosphere using data from the James Webb Space Telescope. This groundbreaking achievement focuses on the gas giant WASP-18b, which is located approximately 400 light-years from Earth.

Researchers utilized a technique known as eclipse mapping, which allows for imaging exoplanets that are too faint to be seen directly due to the brightness of their host stars. According to study co-author Ryan Challener from Cornell University, the method takes advantage of the changes in light as the planet passes behind its star.

During this process, the star obscures the reflected light from the planet, allowing scientists to measure temperature variations in different regions of the atmosphere as the planet becomes partially and fully hidden.

The study, published in the journal Nature Astronomy, builds upon previous two-dimensional temperature maps by employing various wavelengths of light to construct a detailed three-dimensional atmospheric model.

The researchers noted that WASP-18b, which is about ten times the mass of Jupiter and has a year lasting only 23 hours, exhibits two distinct temperature regions on its day side. They discovered a circular hotspot where the planet directly faces its star, which receives the most sunlight, surrounded by a colder ring at the edge of the planet.

This indicates that atmospheric winds are insufficient in redistributing heat across WASP-18b. Surprisingly, the study found that there is less water in the hotspot compared to the planet's average, suggesting that the extreme temperatures in this region may be high enough to break apart water molecules in the atmosphere.

Challener stated that this observation aligns with theoretical predictions, making it an exciting validation through real observations. The implications of this research extend beyond WASP-18b, as further measurements with the James Webb Space Telescope could enhance the resolution of the atmospheric map and facilitate the study of other gas giants.

The advancements provided by this research offer unprecedented insights into alien atmospheres, possibly informing our understanding of habitability and the search for extraterrestrial life.