A collision between two planets may have created a new exoplanet

A group of researchers has discovered a new superdense exoplanet, leading them to believe it was much larger and more gaseous until it collided at high speed with another object at some point in its past. This event removed the planet’s thin atmosphere and water, leaving behind a rock-rich world.

TOI-1853b is slightly smaller than Neptune, but about twice as dense as Earth; In comparison, the last planet in the solar system is three times less dense. These characteristics indicate that its composition is rich in rocks and that its formation did not occur in a traditional way.

TOI-1853b Features:

• Diameter: 44,087 kilometers (3.46 larger than Earth)
• Orbit: 1.24 Earth days
• Mass: 73.2 Earth masses
• Density: 9.7 g/cm3 (denser than steel)

This discovery contradicts what was thought about planets that have this type of composition. They usually become gas giants with a density close to that of water, such as Jupiter, but that is not what happened with TOI-1853b.

Read more:

Collision of giant planets

In a study recently published in the magazine natureThe researchers suggest that the planet is the core of a much larger world that lost its atmosphere through an extremely violent event.

During a simulation of the impact of two giant planets, researchers discovered that TOI-1853b was likely water-rich and collided at a speed of about 75 kilometers per second.

Researchers now hope to continue monitoring the super-dense planet to understand its composition and search for traces of its atmosphere. This future analysis will be able to prove whether TOI-1853b did indeed undergo a violent collision.

We have never investigated such massive and severe effects before, because they were unexpected. There is much work to be done to improve the material models underlying our simulations and to expand the range of extreme giant impacts that are modeled.

Zoe Lenhardt, author of Discovery, said in a statement

Have you watched the new videos on Youtube From Olhar Digital? Subscribe in the channel!