A research team used James Webb Space Telescope observations to map the atmosphere around WASP-17 b, a hot, Jupiter-sized planet beyond our solar system.
Measurements along the planet’s atmospheric edge showed a morning-to-evening temperature contrast of about 650 kelvin, along with changing absorption patterns linked to water vapor and carbon dioxide.
The map describes the planet’s atmosphere, not a solid surface. The study examines one world and assumes its northern and southern atmospheric edges are symmetrical.
