{"id":35940,"date":"2023-10-19T18:36:38","date_gmt":"2023-10-19T18:36:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds"},"modified":"2023-10-19T18:55:51","modified_gmt":"2023-10-19T18:55:51","slug":"nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds","title":{"rendered":"NASA\u2019s Webb Telescope Discovers Game-Changer Quartz Crystals in Exoplanet\u2019s Clouds"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mauritius. <\/strong><\/span>The recent find marking the first-ever detection of silica particles in an exoplanet\u2019s atmosphere and provides remarkable insights into exoplanet composition and weather patterns.<\/p>\n

In a scientific breakthrough that redefines our understanding of exoplanets, NASA\u2019s James Webb Space Telescope has unearthed the presence of minuscule quartz crystals in the high-altitude clouds of the hot Jupiter exoplanet WASP-17 b, which sits some 1,300 light-years from Earth.<\/p>\n

Quartz, a common mineral on Earth used in various applications such as glass manufacturing and microchip production, was discovered in the form of \u201csnowflakes\u201d suspended in the skies of the searing-hot exoplanet. The crystalline particles, smaller than the width of a human hair, were detected racing through the sweltering atmosphere at astonishing speeds exceeding thousands of miles per hour.<\/p>\n

While silicate minerals are prevalent in our solar system and the galaxy, prior observations indicated magnesium-rich silicates in exoplanet atmospheres. The presence of pure quartz (SiO2) particles in WASP-17 b\u2019s clouds challenges assumptions and suggests they may be the \u201cseeds\u201d for the formation of larger silicate grains found in cooler exoplanets and brown dwarfs.<\/p>\n

WASP-17 b, with a volume more than seven times that of Jupiter and a unique, puffy composition, proved ideal for transmission spectroscopy. The technique involves measuring the way a planet\u2019s atmosphere filters and scatters starlight, providing valuable data on its composition.<\/p>\n

During nearly 10 hours of observation, the Webb telescope collected over 1,275 brightness measurements of mid-infrared light, allowing researchers to calculate the wavelengths blocked by the exoplanet\u2019s atmosphere. An unexpected \u201cbump\u201d at 8.6 microns indicated the presence of quartz in the clouds, offering a fresh perspective on exoplanet cloud formation and evolution.<\/p>\n

Although the quartz crystals resemble earthly hexagonal prisms, they are incredibly tiny, measuring only about 10 nanometers across. Unlike terrestrial clouds that capture particles from the ground, the quartz crystals in WASP-17 b\u2019s atmosphere originate in the extreme conditions of its atmosphere, forming directly from gas without a liquid phase.<\/p>\n

Understanding the composition of these clouds is pivotal for comprehending the planet as a whole, as it plays a crucial role in determining the planet\u2019s environment. The study suggests neglecting the oxygen locked in minerals like quartz could lead to an underestimation of the planet\u2019s total abundance of elements.<\/p>\n

The presence and distribution of the tiny quartz crystals remain a topic of further study. Researchers speculate that they are likely present along the day\/night transition region of the planet, where winds could transport them at incredible speeds, contributing to the complexity of exoplanet weather patterns.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Mauritius<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mauritius. The recent find marking the first-ever detection of silica particles in an exoplanet\u2019s atmosphere and provides remarkable insights into exoplanet composition and weather patterns. In a scientific breakthrough that redefines our understanding of exoplanets, NASA\u2019s James Webb Space Telescope has unearthed the presence of minuscule quartz crystals in the high-altitude clouds of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":35939,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,9],"tags":[233,245,241],"class_list":["post-35940","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-miscellaneous","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-mauritius","tag-mauritius"],"yoast_head":"\nNASA\u2019s Webb Telescope Discovers Game-Changer Quartz Crystals in Exoplanet\u2019s Clouds - Mauritius<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The recent find marking the first-ever detection of silica particles in an exoplanet\u2019s atmosphere and provides remarkabl ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NASA\u2019s Webb Telescope Discovers Game-Changer Quartz Crystals in Exoplanet\u2019s Clouds\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The recent find marking the first-ever detection of silica particles in an exoplanet\u2019s atmosphere and provides remarkabl ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Mauritius\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-10-19T18:36:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-10-19T18:55:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/sites\/61\/2023\/10\/sm_1697729068.174991.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"NASA\u2019s Webb Telescope Discovers Game-Changer Quartz Crystals in Exoplanet\u2019s Clouds\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-10-19T18:36:38+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-10-19T18:55:51+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds\"},\"wordCount\":444,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/sites\/61\/2023\/10\/sm_1697729068.174991.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Mauritius\",\"Mauritius\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"miscellaneous\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nasas-webb-telescope-discovers-game-changer-quartz-crystals-in-exoplanets-clouds\",\"name\":\"NASA\u2019s Webb Telescope Discovers Game-Changer Quartz Crystals in Exoplanet\u2019s Clouds - 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