James Webb Discovers Lemon-Shaped Exoplanet Near Pulsar

 

The James Webb Space Telescope has revealed one of the most extreme and unusual worlds ever detected beyond the Solar System. Located about 2,000 light-years from Earth, the exoplanet PSR J2322-2650b displays a striking lemon-like shape, challenging long-held assumptions about planetary structure and survival in hostile cosmic environments.

An extreme planet in a hostile orbit

PSR J2322-2650b orbits a millisecond pulsar, the ultra-dense remnant of a collapsed star. Unlike typical planets that circle luminous stars, this world revolves around an object roughly the mass of the Sun but compressed to the size of a city. The planet completes one orbit in just 7.8 hours at a distance of nearly one million miles, exposing it to intense gravity and relentless radiation.

Record-breaking temperatures and tidal stress

The close orbit subjects the Jupiter-sized planet to extreme heating. Observations indicate temperatures of about 3,700°F on the side facing the pulsar, while the far side remains near 1,200°F. These enormous temperature differences and gravitational forces stretch the planet along its orbit, producing its distinctive lemon-like appearance through powerful tidal deformation.

A chemically unique atmosphere

Using advanced infrared instruments, Webb captured a detailed atmospheric profile unlike any previously recorded. Instead of common molecules such as water vapour or methane, PSR J2322-2650b shows abundant carbon compounds, including C₂ and C₃, along with helium. The near absence of oxygen and nitrogen marks it as chemically distinct from over 150 exoplanets studied so far

Carbon clouds and unanswered questions

Webb data suggest the presence of carbon-rich soot clouds, with interior conditions potentially allowing carbon to crystallise under extreme pressure. Existing models of planetary formation struggle to explain such a chemically pure carbon environment. As a result, PSR J2322-2650b stands as a key example of how Webb continues to expose gaps in current theories about how planets form and endure in the most extreme regions of the universe.

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