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An exoplanet is wrapped in glory

Astronomers spot the first planet outside the Solar System to boast a phenomenon reminiscent of a rainbow.
Artist impression of glory on exoplanet WASP-76b.

The rainbow-like phenomenon called a glory (artist’s illustration) appears at the boundary between the day and night sides of the exoplanet WASP-76b. Credit: ESA (CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO)

When looking down on a cloud from an aeroplane, you can sometimes spot an iridescent aura surrounding the plane’s shadow. It is a ‘glory’, a phenomenon reminiscent of a rainbow but arising through a different mechanism. Astronomers could now have made the first sighting of a glory outside the Solar System1.

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Nature 628, 477 (2024)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-024-01032-5

References

  1. Demangeon, O. D. S. et al. Astron. Astrophys. 684, A27 (2024).

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