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  • Writer's pictureKyle Sooley-Brookings

That Planet Covered in Ice that's on Fire


By Aldaron, a.k.a. Aldaron - Own work, incorporating public domain images for reference planets (see below), inspired by Thingg's size comparison, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8854161
By Aldaron, a.k.a. Aldaron - Own work, incorporating public domain images for reference planets (see below), inspired by Thingg's size comparison, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8854161

Gliese 436 b is about the size of Neptune that orbits the red dwarf Gliese 436. Really that is not that interesting, oh also it's covered in ice and is on fire!


The planet's surface temperature is estimated from measurements taken as it passes behind the star to be 439°C.


At the same time, the planet is made of ice.


So how can ice survive at a temperature over 400 degrees? The immense gravity of the planet is strong enough to compress the trace amounts of water vapor in its atmosphere, keeping it from reverting to its liquid form.

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