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NASA's Hubble Telescope Discovers An 'Evaporating' Planet (usatoday.com)

Researchers at the University of Geneva Switzerland have used NASA's Hubble telescope to find an exoplanet that's evaporating. The exoplanet, GJ 3470b, shows signs of losing hydrogen in its atmosphere, causing it to shrink. USA Today reports: The study is part of exploration into "hot Neptunes," planets that are the size of Neptune, sit very close to their star, and have atmospheres as hot at 1,700 degrees Fahrenheit, says NASA. Finding a "hot Neptune" is rare because they sit so close to their star and tend to evaporate more quickly. In the case of GJ 3470b, scientists classify it as a "warmer" Neptune because it sits farther away from its star. The exoplanet discovered by astronauts is losing its atmosphere at a rate 100 times faster than a previous "warmer" Neptune planet discovered a few years before, according to a study published Thursday in the journal "Astronomy & Astrophysics." The planet sits 3.7 million miles from its star. For comparison, Earth is 92.9 million miles from the sun. Researchers say these "hot Neptune" planets shrink in size and morph into "Super Earths," versions of our planet that are massive and more rocky.

47 comments

  1. Fahrenheit degrees by blindvic · · Score: 3, Funny

    > as hot at 1,700 degrees Fahrenheit Are the still using Fahrenheit degrees in scientific domains?

    1. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They are also talking in miles.

    2. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by Scarletdown · · Score: 1

      The planet sits 3.7 million metric miles from its star. For comparison, Earth is 92.9 million metric miles from the sun.

      There. Happy now?

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      This space unintentionally left blank.
    3. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Much.
        What now is remaining and is a bit saddening, is that the USAians need to be reminded that the metric system is what the scientific world uses. Personally in my home, I measure lengths with steps, palmlengths, and fingerwidths, while time is mostly with cycles of the moon and hearststrokes with sunrise as the reference moment. Yet, I am humble enough to not go around and talk to others by using these.

      Thank you.

    4. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      If only we could invent people who would take raw stories, fact check them, fix grammar and spelling, and correct the units.

      We could call them "Slashdot Editors"

      If only.

    5. Re: Fahrenheit degrees by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Would we call them "astronauts" as well?

    6. Re: Fahrenheit degrees by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I can't understand these new units. How many Texas' or Libraries of Congress?

    7. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by DNS-and-BIND · · Score: 1

      The angry outburst against an American site using American units is so cliche by now. It's the new "Natalie Portman hot grits" of Slashdot.

      --
      Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
    8. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Based in youstardia, sure, but with a strong scientific slant (well, das war einmal) and quite the international readership.

      The site could be dragging youstardia somewhat close to the modern age, but then again, that requires those mythical "Slashdot Editors" that remain curiously uninvented and thereby unavailable on this site.

    9. Re: Fahrenheit degrees by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      92 million miles puhleaze...that's not even half a Texas.

    10. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      No it's not at all. It's just intellectually backwards within the scientific, engineering and technical worlds in 2018.

    11. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by DNS-and-BIND · · Score: 1

      Yeah, see, those backward Americans, landing space probes on other planets and curing diseases. These angry outbursts occur every time someone uses Fahrenheit, and it just gets funnier every time. Natalie Portman hot grits!

      --
      Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
    12. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by CrimsonAvenger · · Score: 4, Funny

      Are the still using Fahrenheit degrees in scientific domains?

      USA Today. It's about as scientific a domain as the The Times of London or Der Tagesspiegel.

      Your point was? I mean other, than trying to look smarter than you are....

      --

      "I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
    13. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is still an American site, and in America, they still use the Fahrenheit scale. Also miles, pounds, inches, and assorted other quaint units. Surely you knew this already? Stop being a smartass and grow up.

    14. Re: Fahrenheit degrees by tsa · · Score: 2

      One doesnâ(TM)t rule out the other. Fact is that America lives on its own planet as far as its inhabitants are concerned. That is often annoying for the other Earthlings.

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      -- Cheers!

    15. Re: Fahrenheit degrees by jddj · · Score: 2

      That's what the "astronauts" who discovered it said.

    16. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by pezezin · · Score: 1

      More like crashing space probes on other planets because someone mixed up the units.

    17. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      To be honest, it's hardly the "scientific, engineering and technical" parts of America that use antiques. Just their general public and other retards like the target audience of USA-Toady.They probably still haven't got over being beaten hollow by the Vietnamese after 20 years of bombing.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
    18. Re:Fahrenheit degrees by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, but the planet is about 100 lightyears away, so the temperature we're measuring now is so old we were still using Fahrenheit back then.

  2. âoe... The exoplanet discovered by astronaut by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    WTF?!

  3. Re: âoe... The exoplanet discovered by astron by AxeTheMax · · Score: 1

    WTF indeed. Assume everything you read here (or on USA Today) is written by a journalist and therefore liable to be utter garbage, until proved otherwise.

  4. Re: âoe... The exoplanet discovered by astron by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Dead wrong. A JOURNALIST would do fine. A hired blogger turned reporter? You get whatever they're paying for 500-1500 words. A JOURNALIST requires the budget for research time, even a staff. Please read more.

  5. Fake gas leak by Tablizer · · Score: 1

    Global hydrogen loss is Fake News, believe me! CNN runs that #HubbleRustBucket, and it still found NO credible evidence of Orion collusion. They can stick it in their black-hole. Maybe they'll find Hillary's emails in the hole, ya think? The planet's hydrogen is doing the best ever, setting all kinds of records. Make Gas Great Again!

    1. Re: Fake gas leak by tsa · · Score: 1

      Of course itâ(TM)s fake news. An respectable organisation like NASA would never use Fahrenheit.

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      -- Cheers!

  6. To be pedantic... by wierdling · · Score: 2

    It isn't "NASA's" telescope. It is a joint venture between the ESA and NASA.

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    1. Re: To be pedantic... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm glad you picked up on that, but missed that the summary calls "astronomers" "astronauts".

    2. Re:To be pedantic... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Just about to say that myself.

    3. Re:To be pedantic... by CanadianMacFan · · Score: 1

      And how can a gas planet evaporate? Or more specifically Hydrogen gas evaporate? The atmosphere, which is made up of the gas, is escaping.

  7. Boring details by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    As Einstein said...I want to know God's thoughts, all the rest are details

    Evaporating Neprunes...hardly the most interesting thing the Universe could produce. But I guess we need "grunt" autonomy work as well.

  8. Can we stop complaining about Imperial units? by Solandri · · Score: 1

    If it bugs you that much, just install an extension. Problem solved. Unless of course your real goal is just to complain about anything American.

    1. Re:Can we stop complaining about Imperial units? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Except its British, not American.

  9. Re: âoe... The exoplanet discovered by astron by drinkypoo · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Total bullshit. The mainstream news has been misreporting science due to incompetence since time was time. Literally every time I read an article about something I understand on a technical level I find that the author has got important details wrong, either because they failed to comprehend them entirely, or because they tried to dumb them down and failed miserably because you can only omit so much before what you are saying becomes outright incorrect.

    --
    "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  10. Re: âoe... The exoplanet discovered by astron by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Not only science. A friend in economics complains about the same: economics coverage cuts corners and twist facts. A friend in military complains about the same: coverage of conflicts cuts corners and twists facts. I'm in computing, and the same happens. A logical step would be to conclude that most news are written by incompetent people.

  11. That Thanos Snap by bytethese · · Score: 1

    It's evaporating planets now?

  12. Miles and Fahrenheit ... by kbahey · · Score: 1

    Miles and Fahrenheit ... Wow ...

  13. Re: âoe... The exoplanet discovered by astron by grep+-v+'.*'+* · · Score: 1

    you can only omit so much before what you are saying becomes outright incorrect

    And on a related subject, from that beacon of wisdom, Barbie: "Math is Tough."

    --
    If the universe is someone's simulation -- does that mean the stars are just stuck pixels?
  14. "The exoplanet discovered by astronauts..." by edi_guy · · Score: 1

    Seems like the fact that we've sent astronauts to a star 97 light years away would be the bigger headline.

    1. Re: "The exoplanet discovered by astronauts..." by fofo220 · · Score: 1

      grammar and spelling, and correct the units. We could call them "Slashdot Editors" https://8ballpool.onl/ https://discord.software/ https://omegle.onl/

  15. Re: âoe... The exoplanet discovered by astron by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "The mainstream news has been misreporting science" Again, you didn't read it from a science-focused journalistic endeavor, you expected journalism from the evening news? You're a moron then.

  16. Hot Neptune = Venus by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Until she removes her dress. That Medina is a monster, y’all.

  17. For those that care, the paper. by RockDoctor · · Score: 2
    Title - "Hubble PanCET: An extended upper atmosphere of neutral hydrogen around the warm Neptune GJ 3470 b"

    At https://arxiv.org/pdf/1812.051...

    What is the big interest? Well, mostly that the population of "hot Jupiters" seems to be bimodal (two types of highest frequencies, but intermediate and extreme systems are present). This planet lays near the edge of one of those lower frequency bands, and is losing in the order of 10,000 tonnes/second of hydrogen - which sounds a lot, but over it's 2 billion year lifetime (less than half that of the Earth) only amounts to between 4% and 35% of it's original mass.

    If there were other planets in it's system, that's really mess up their orbital stability, if they had any to start with (on the billion-year time scale). On the other hand, that gas takes a time to be driven out of the system, potentially providing a mechanism for "dynamic friction" to damp the instabilities produced.

    --
    Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"