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Nearby Super-Earth Likely a Diamond Planet

By Guest PostOctober 11, 2012Science55 cancri e, atmosphere, cancer, carbon, carbon rich, chemistry, compound, constellation, core, david spergel, Diamond, diamond planet, earth, earth mass, element, fahrenheit, formation, gas planet, graphite, habitable world, hyper speed, interior, kanani lee, mass, mineral, molten iron, mountain formation, nikku madhusudhan, olivier mousis, oxygen, planet, plate tectonics, princeton university, radius, rocky planet, scientist, seismic activity, silicates, silicon carbide, size, specific characteristics, star, stellar composition, super earth, surface, temperature, thermal evolution, volcanism, water, yale university

New research led by Yale University scientists suggests that a rocky planet twice Earth’s size orbiting a nearby star is a diamond planet.

“This is our first glimpse of a rocky world with a fundamentally different chemistry from Earth,” said lead researcher Nikku Madhusudhan, a Yale postdoctoral researcher in physics and astronomy. “The surface of this planet is likely covered in graphite and diamond rather than water and granite.”

The paper reporting the findings has been accepted for publication in the journal Astrophysical Journal Letters. (more…)

NASA’s Spitzer Sees the Light of Alien ‘Super Earth’

PASADENA, Calif. – NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope has detected light emanating from a “super-Earth” planet beyond our solar system for the first time. While the planet is not habitable, the detection is a historic step toward the eventual search for signs of life on other planets.

“Spitzer has amazed us yet again,” said Bill Danchi, Spitzer program scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “The spacecraft is pioneering the study of atmospheres of distant planets and paving the way for NASA’s upcoming James Webb Space Telescope to apply a similar technique on potentially habitable planets.” (more…)

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Nearby Super-Earth Likely a Diamond Planet

NASA’s Spitzer Sees the Light of Alien ‘Super Earth’