WASP-104b is a hot Jupiter exoplanet that orbits the star WASP-104.[1] It is considered to be one of the darkest exoplanets discovered.[3][4] WASP-104b was discovered in 2014; according to a 2018 study at Keele University, the planet's dense atmosphere of potassium and sodium absorbs more than 97% of light it receives.[3]
Characteristics
Researchers have considered WASP-104b to be one of the darkest exoplanets ever discovered.[3][5] In 2018, scientists from Keele University said the exoplanet's thick sodium and potassium atmosphere can absorb more than 97% of the light that falls on it.[3] A paper published by Cornell University Library describes the exoplanet as "darker than charcoal" and "one of the least reflective planets found to date", even darker than WASP-12b which absorbs 94% of it receives.[3][6] The only other exoplanet thought to be darker than WASP-104b is TrES-2b.[3] Its reflectance has been compared with that of WASP-12b despite being somewhat darker.[7]
In 2020, a transmission spectroscopy study has indicated that WASP-104b has a red-colored cloud deck and possibly hazes.[8] WASP-104b's size is comparable to that of Jupiter; its mass and radius are 1.272 times and 1.137 times greater than Jupiter's, respectively.[9] It has 12.5 times the mass of Earth and a low density, and may be composed of gas.[9]
WASP-104b is the only known exoplanet to orbit WASP-104, a 3-billion-year-old G8 star. WASP-104b's orbital period is 1.8 days; it is located 2.6 million miles from its star and has an orbital radius of 0.02918 astronomical units (2,712,000 miles).[10][9] WASP-104 and its planet are located 466 light years away from the Sun in the constellation Leo.[9][3][10]
^Chen, G.; Pallé, E.; Parviainen, H.; Wang, H.; Van Boekel, R.; Murgas, F.; Yan, F.; Béjar, V J S.; Casasayas-Barris, N.; Crouzet, N.; Esparza-Borges, E.; Fukui, A.; Garai, Z.; Kawauchi, K.; Kurita, S.; Kusakabe, N.; De Leon, J. P.; Livingston, J.; Luque, R.; Madrigal-Aguado, A.; Mori, M.; Narita, N.; Nishiumi, T.; Oshagh, M.; Sánchez-Benavente, M.; Tamura, M.; Terada, Y.; Watanabe, N. (2021), "An enhanced slope in the transmission spectrum of the hot Jupiter WASP-104b", Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 500 (4): 5420–5435, arXiv:2011.06329, doi:10.1093/mnras/staa3555
