Beta Pictoris c

Beta Pictoris c is a super-Jupiter, an exoplanet that has a radius and mass greater than that of the planet Jupiter. It has a mass of around 10 Jupiter masses (M_J)^[1] and a radius of about 1.2 times that of Jupiter.^[3]

The planet orbits an A-type main sequence star named Beta Pictoris. The star has a mass of 1.75 solar masses (M_☉) and a radius of 1.8 solar radii (R_☉). It has a surface temperature of 8056 K and is only 12 million years old.^[7] It is slightly metal-rich, with a metallicity (Fe/H) of 0.06, or 112% of that found in the Sun.^[8] Its luminosity (L_☉) is 8.7 times that of the Sun.

Beta Pictoris c orbits at around 2.7 astronomical units (400 million kilometres) from Beta Pictoris, about 3.5 times closer than Beta Pictoris b.^[5] It has an orbital period of 1,200 days (3.3 years).^[1] The planet spends most or all of its orbit in the habitable zone.^[9]

Beta Pictoris c was detected indirectly, through 10 years of observation^[10] of radial velocity data from the High Accuracy Radial Velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) spectroscope on the European Southern Observatory's ESO 3.6 m Telescope at La Silla Observatory in Chile by a worldwide team led by Anne-Marie Lagrange, as the discovery of the planet was publicly announced in August 2019.^[1] This discovery was described as being able to help scientists further understand the formation of planetary systems and their evolution in the early stages.^[4] In October 2020, new images of the exoplanet were revealed.^[11]

The European Southern Observatory confirmed the presence of Beta Pictoris c, on 6 October 2020, through the use of optical interferometry.^[3] With a semi-major axis of approximatively 2.7 astronomical units, Beta Pictoris c is, as of 2020, the closest extrasolar planet to its star ever photographed.^[4]

As of 2022, the orbital parameters and mass of Beta Pictoris c have been measured using a combination of data from radial velocity, astrometry, and imaging,^[12] showing that it is about 10.1 times the mass of Jupiter, on an eccentric orbit (eccentricity 0.31) with a semi-major axis of about 2.7 AU and an orbital period of about 3.3 years.^[2]