K2-66b
Mega-Earth exoplanet orbiting K2-66
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
K2-66b is a confirmed[2] mega-Earth orbiting the subgiant K2-66, about 520 parsecs (1,700 ly) from Earth in the direction of Aquarius.[1] It is an extremely hot and dense planet heavier than Neptune, but with only about half its radius.[3]
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | K2 |
| Discovery date | 2017 |
| Transit | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| 0.05983±0.00072 AU | |
| 5.06963±0.00081 d | |
| Inclination | 86.6+4.4 −2.4° |
| Star | K2-66 |
| Physical characteristics[1] | |
| 2.49 R🜨 | |
| Mass | 0.06702 MJ |
Mean density | 7.6 g/cm3 |
Planet properties
Mass, radius, and temperature
K2-66b is a mega-Earth with radius 2.49 R🜨 and mass 21.3 M🜨.[4] The planet's temperature is highly variable due to the variability of its host star, and is currently estimated at 1,372 K (1,099 °C; 2,010 °F).[2]
Orbit
The planet orbits every 5.07 days at 0.06 AU.[1] It orbits within a "photoevaporation desert", where orbiting exoplanets should be very uncommon.[3][5] K2-66b's orbit is nearly circular.[2][6]
Star
The star,[7] K2-66 is a G1 sub-giant in Aquarius.[4] It has a sun-like temperature of 5887 K,[1][2] which corresponds to its spectral class and is very close to that of the rotationally variable[8] star Kepler-130.[9][10][11] It has a radius of 1.67 R☉ and a mass of 1.11 M☉.[2] Its metallicity is −0.047, and its apparent magnitude is 11.71.[1]