Hostile Skies: Star’s X-Rays Rip Away Planet’s Atmosphere
Hostile Skies: Star’s X-Rays Rip Away Planet’s Atmosphere
Astronomers have discovered that the exoplanet TOI 1227b is being stripped of its atmosphere by brutal X-ray radiation from its parent star, TOI 1227, according to a study by an international group of astronomers analyzing data obtained by the Chandra X-ray Observatory.
The Doomed Planet: TOI 1227b
Location: 330 light-years away, orbiting a tiny red dwarf star (just 1/10th the Sun’s mass).
Extreme Orbit: Five times closer to its star than Mercury is to the Sun.
Under Attack: This proximity leads to atmospheric loss equivalent to Earth's entire atmosphere within 200 years.
What’s Happening?
The planet's atmosphere simply cannot withstand the high dose of X-rays it was receiving from its star, explained lead author Attila Varga.
Shrinking Future: In a billion years, TOI 1227b could:
- Lose its atmosphere within a billion years, shrinking from 17 Earth masses to about 7.
- Its diameter will reduce to about 1/10th its current size.
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