Titanium oxide in the atmosphere of the exoplanet WASP-19b
Titanium oxide in the atmosphere of the exoplanet WASP-19b
Astronomers have detected titanium oxide in the atmosphere of the extrasolar planet WASP-19b. In a sufficient amount, titanium oxide can prevent heat from entering or escaping an atmosphere, resulting in thermal inversion: the temperature is higher in the upper atmosphere and decreases downwards, i.e., exactly the opposite from what is normally the case. WASP-19b is a so-called ‘hot Jupiter’, which orbits its star every 19 hours at a distance of just 240,000 kilometres, which is why temperatures of approximately 2000 degrees Celsius prevail in the atmosphere.
