Astronomers recently found a new exoplanet called Enaiposha, or GJ 1214 b, approximately 47 light years from Earth, orbiting a red dwarf star. But while it was once thought to be a mini-Neptune, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) collected new data that have redefined Enaiposha as a ‘Super-Venus’: Venus, but on a much more epic scale.
The planet, discovered for the first time in 2009, has a mass and radius that lie between those of Earth and Neptune. With such a discovery, follow-up studies found that it indeed has a large atmosphere, prompting scientists to study its characteristics. This discovery challenges previous concepts of exoplanets and adds to the diversity of planets outside our solar system, offering a new avenue for exploration.
Enaiposha’s thick atmosphere makes it hard to observe. In 2023, the research analysis based on JWST combined with data from Hubble indicated that it may harbor a water-rich atmosphere replete with vaporized metals. Recently, Everett Schlawin and Kazumasa Ohno-led study found that as Enaiposha goes around its star, the starlight passing through the planet’s atmosphere is changed by carbon dioxide in proportions similar to Venus.
“The detected CO2 signal from the first study is tiny, and so it required careful statistical analysis to ensure that it is real. At the same time, we needed the physical and chemical insights to extract the true nature of GJ 1214 b’s atmosphere,” said Ohno.
In addition, their results indicated that at lower altitudes, Enaiposha’s atmosphere could be dominated by metals with much less hydrogen, while at the altitudes, high levels of aerosols are likely to be dense hazy conditions, suggesting Enaiposha as a Super-Venus, a hot planet with a carbon-rich atmosphere, having less visibility. However, due to a rather small detected signature, further study and verification is required.