Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2023 January 24
An illustration showing the surface of a planet that
has red lava flows and dark cliffs. A red star is seen in the
background.
Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

LHS 475 b: Earth-Sized Exoplanet
Illustration Credit: DeepAI's Fantasy World Generator

Explanation: If you could stand on exoplanet LHS 475 b, what might you see? No one knows for sure but pictured here is an interesting guess made by an Earth-based artificial intelligence (AI) engine. The existence of the exoplanet was indicated in data taken by the Earth-orbiting TESS satellite but confirmed and further investigated only this year by the near-Earth Sun-orbiting James Webb Space Telescope. What is known for sure is that LHS 475 b has a mass very similar to our Earth and closely orbits a small red star about 40 light years away. The featured AI-illustrated guess depicts a plausibly rugged Earth-like landscape replete with molten lava and with the central red star rising in the distance. Webb data does not as yet reveal, however, whether LHS 475 b has an atmosphere. One of Webb’s science objectives is to follow up previous discoveries of distant exoplanets to better discern their potential for developing life. (Editor's Note: This text was written without the help of AI.)

Tomorrow's picture: a dark space


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Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
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