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Astronomers Discover Marshmallow-Like “Fluffiest Planet Ever”
New exoplanets are being discovered every day, with NASA’s exoplanet catalog reaching an impressive 5,000 confirmed exoplanets. Recently, researchers using the 3.5-meter telescope at the Kitt Peak National Observatory telescope in Arizona discovered an exoplanet with an average density similar to that of a marshmallow. Their findings have been published in The Astronomical Journal.
The Jupiter-sized exoplanet TOI-3757 b has an extremely low density. Like our solar system’s Saturn, TOI-3757 b has such a low density that it would be able to float in water if it were dropped in a planet-sized swimming pool. In fact, this exoplanet has a density similar to that of a marshmallow, making it perhaps the fluffiest planet ever discovered.
TOI-3757 b and its host star are located 580 light years away from Earth in the Auriga constellation. This planet has caught the attention of astronomers because of its incredibly low density, only 0.27 grams per cubic centimeter. This is less than half that of Saturn, which is the lowest-density planet in our own solar system. What’s more, TOI-3757 b has an unusually low density for the type of star it orbits.
TOI-3757 is a red dwarf, which is considered relatively “cool” by star standards. These stars are the dimmest and smallest of stars that actively fusion…
