Hot, Rocky World
Ssc2015 02a

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/R. Hurt (IPAC)

Artwork • July 30th, 2015 • ssc2015-02a

ssc2015-02a

This artist's rendition shows one possible appearance for the planet HD 219134b, the nearest rocky exoplanet found to date outside our solar system. The planet is 1.6 times the size of Earth, and whips around its star in just three days. Scientists predict that the scorching-hot planet -- known to be rocky through measurements of its mass and size -- would have a rocky, partially molten surface with geological activity, including possibly volcanoes.

About the Object

Name
HD 219134 b
Type
Planet > Type > Terrestrial
Planet > Special Cases > Transiting
Distance
21 Light Years