WASP-8b
WASP-8b is an exoplanet orbiting the star WASP-8A in the constellation of Sculptor. The star is similar to the Sun and forms a binary star with a red dwarf star (WASP-8B) of half the Sun's mass that orbits WASP-8A 4.5 arcseconds away. The system is 294 light-years (90 parsecs) away and is therefore located closer to Earth than many other star systems that are known to feature planets similar to WASP-8b. The planet and its parent star were discovered in the SuperWASP batch -6b to -15b. On 1 April 2008, Dr. Don Pollacco of Queen's University Belfast announced them at the RAS National Astronomy Meeting (NAM 2008).
Size comparison of WASP-8b with Jupiter. | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Cameron et al. (SuperWASP) |
| Discovery date | April 1, 2008 |
| Transit | |
| Orbital characteristics | |
| 0.0817±0.0006 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.3057±0.0046 |
| 8.158715±0.000016 d | |
| Inclination | 88.51°±0.09° |
| 274.21°±0.33° | |
| Semi-amplitude | 221.65±1.39 m/s |
| Star | WASP-8 |
| Physical characteristics | |
Mean radius | 1.165±0.032 RJ |
| Mass | 2.216±0.035 MJ |
Mean density | 1.7370±0.1325 g/cm3 |
| 42.5±2.3 m/s2 (4.34 g) | |
| Temperature | 1552±85 K (1,279 °C; 2,334 °F) |
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