NASA Webb Feat: In what is being termed a significant breakthrough in astronomical observation, an international team of scientists working with NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has successfully captured an image of an exoplanet located roughly 12 light-years from Earth. The planet, named Epsilon Indi Ab, stands out as one of the coldest exoplanets ever observed.
The James Webb Space Telescope is an international program led by NASA, with ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) as its partners.
Epsilon Indi Ab: A Cold Giant In The Cosmos
Epsilon Indi Ab is a giant exoplanet several times the mass of Jupiter, orbiting the K-type star Epsilon Indi A, which is slightly cooler but similar in age to the Sun. This groundbreaking observation was made possible by the advanced coronagraph on Webb’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI). To date, only a handful of exoplanets have been directly imaged by space- and ground-based observatories, NASA said on its website.
“Our prior observations of this system have been more indirect measurements of the star, which actually allowed us to see ahead of time that there was likely a giant planet in this system tugging on the star,” said Caroline Morley of the University of Texas at Austin, a member of the research team. “That's why our team chose this system to observe first with Webb.”
Elisabeth Matthews of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Germany, the lead author of the study, added: “This discovery is exciting because the planet is quite similar to Jupiter — it is a little warmer and is more massive, but is more similar to Jupiter than any other planet that has been imaged so far.”
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Direct Imaging Breakthrough By James Webb
Most previously imaged exoplanets have been the youngest and hottest, still radiating the energy from their formation. As planets cool and contract over time, they become much fainter and harder to image. However, Webb’s capability for mid-infrared imaging, coupled with its large mirror for good spatial resolution, made it possible to separate the faint glow of Epsilon Indi Ab from its host star.
The planet's temperature is estimated to be about 35 degrees Fahrenheit (2 degrees Celsius), positioning it among the coldest exoplanets ever detected. This temperature is just roughly 180 degrees Fahrenheit (100 degrees Celsius) warmer than that of the gas giants in our solar system, providing a unique opportunity to study a planetary system that closely resembles our own.
“Cold planets are very faint, and most of their emission is in the mid-infrared,” Matthews explained. “Webb is ideally suited to conduct mid-infrared imaging, which is extremely hard to do from the ground.”
Unexpected Findings
While the research team anticipated the presence of a planet in this system based on radial velocity measurements, Epsilon Indi Ab presented some surprises. “It’s about twice as massive, a little farther from its star, and has a different orbit than we expected,” shared Matthews. “The atmosphere of the planet also appears to be a little different than the model predictions.”
Preliminary measurements suggest significant amounts of methane, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide in the planet’s atmosphere, potentially indicating a very cloudy environment. The team aims to conduct further photometric and spectroscopic observations with Webb to better understand the planet’s atmospheric composition.
Paving The Way for Future Exploration
The direct imaging of exoplanets is crucial for detailed characterisation, allowing scientists to collect light directly from the observed planet and compare its brightness across different wavelengths. NASA's upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will continue this work, aiming to photograph Jupiter-like worlds orbiting Sun-like stars for the first time, the agency said.
These groundbreaking observations were conducted under Webb’s Cycle 1 General Observer program 2243 and have been published in the journal Nature.