一顆新發(fā)現(xiàn)的足球形狀的行星正在向太空中噴射重金屬

一顆新發(fā)現(xiàn)的足球形狀的行星正在向太空中噴射重金屬

Just when we think we've seen every type of world — gas giants, dwarfs, terrestrials, even precious puffy planets — along comes another new model to prove that planets are the ultimate non-conformists.

就在我們以為我們已經(jīng)看到了所有類(lèi)型的世界——氣態(tài)巨行星、矮行星、陸地生物，甚至是珍貴的膨脹行星——又出現(xiàn)了一個(gè)新的模型來(lái)證明行星是終極的不墨守成規(guī)者。

The planet, spotted this week by the Hubble Space Telescope, is dubbed WASP-121b. But don't be fooled by the name; this is no white Anglo-Saxon planet. It's different — from its weird, wobbly dimensions to its penchant for blasting heavy metal into the universe.

這顆行星本周被哈勃太空望遠(yuǎn)鏡發(fā)現(xiàn)，被命名為WASP-121b。但不要被這個(gè)名字所迷惑;這不是盎格魯-撒克遜白人的星球。它是不同的——從它怪異的、搖擺不定的維度到它向宇宙中噴射重金屬的嗜好。

WASP-121b lives so close to its star, the planet is practically on fire, blazing to the tune of 4,600 degrees Fahrenheit, or 2,540 Celsius. In fact, its upper atmosphere is about 10 times hotter than any other known planetary atmosphere.

WASP-121b生活在離它的恒星如此之近的地方，這顆行星簡(jiǎn)直是著火了，燃燒的溫度高達(dá)4600華氏度(合2540攝氏度)。事實(shí)上，它的上層大氣溫度是任何已知行星大氣溫度的10倍。

The plane, which resides about 900 light-years from Earth, is far more likely to burn out than fade away. Its upper atmosphere is hot enough that — for the first time — scientists detected heavy metals like iron and magnesium dying to get out.

這架距離地球約900光年的飛機(jī)很可能會(huì)燃燒殆盡，而不是逐漸消失。它的上層大氣溫度足夠高，以至于科學(xué)家們第一次探測(cè)到鐵和鎂等重金屬正在慢慢流失。

As the planet vents hydrogen and helium into space, those heavy elements join them for the ride, as super-hot gases.

當(dāng)行星將氫和氦噴入太空時(shí)，這些重元素以超高溫氣體的形式加入其中。

The planet's upper atmosphere is the hottest ever detected — hot enough to send heavy metal gases into space. (Photo: NASA, ESA, and J. Olmsted [STScI])

"The heavy metals are escaping partly because the planet is so big and puffy that its gravity is relatively weak. This is a planet being actively stripped of its atmosphere," David Sing of Johns Hopkins University noted in the NASA release.

“重金屬正在逃逸，部分原因是地球太大太胖，重力相對(duì)較弱。這是一顆正在積極脫離大氣層的行星。

They had better hurry, because scientists say the crushing gravity of its host star is likely to shred WASP-121b sooner rather than later.

它們最好快一點(diǎn)，因?yàn)榭茖W(xué)家們說(shuō)，它的主恒星的巨大引力可能會(huì)很快撕碎WASP-121b。

If it doesn't die of extreme weight loss first.

如果它沒(méi)有先死于質(zhì)量損失。

"The hydrogen and helium gas is outflowing, almost like a river, and is dragging these metals with them," Sing adds. "It's a very efficient mechanism for mass loss."

辛補(bǔ)充說(shuō):“氫氣和氦氣正在向外流動(dòng)，幾乎就像一條河，并將這些金屬拖在一起。這是一種非常有效的質(zhì)量損失機(jī)制。”

Did we mention WASP-121b is shaped like an American football? That would the star's heft again, constantly stretching and distorting it.

我們提到WASP-121b的形狀像美式足球嗎?這將會(huì)使恒星的重量再次增加，不斷地拉伸和扭曲它。

And what does a planet with all that fire in its belly do in the face of looming destruction?

面對(duì)即將到來(lái)的毀滅，一個(gè)腹部充滿火焰的星球會(huì)做些什么呢?

Then, for the little rebel that paid a steep price for a front-row ticket to its star, the music will finally be over.

然后，對(duì)于這個(gè)為明星前排門(mén)票付出高昂代價(jià)的小叛逆來(lái)說(shuō)，音樂(lè)終于要結(jié)束了。