Researchers find 'fluffy oddball' of a planet with a composition similar to cotton candy
The celestial body, which scientists called the second lightest planet ever discovered
Dubbed WASP-193b, the planet is not the first to be compared to the classic confectionary staple of amusement parks and state fairs.
“The reason why it’s close to cotton candy is because both are pretty much air," study co-author Julien de Wit of MIT said in a statement.
First discovered in 2023, WASP-193b appears to be about 50% bigger than Jupiter, yet is a fraction of its density.
Specifically, the star-orbiting exoplanet outside of our solar system is about seven times less massive than Jupiter
which is why astronomers compare its low density to cotton candy. Only the Neptune-like Kepler-51d, discovered in 2014, is lighter, according to the researchers.
To find these giant objects with such a small density is really, really rare,” said Barkaoui, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Liège in Belgium.
“There’s a class of planets called puffy Jupiters, and it’s been a mystery for 15 years now as to what they are. And this is an extreme case of that class.”