News Astronomy

The biggest planet orbiting TRAPPIST-1 doesn’t appear to have an atmosphere

The finding raises questions about atmospheres around the cooler planets in the system

An illustration of an orange planet with dark orange and red spots scattered across its surface.

Exoplanet TRAPPIST-1b (illustrated), which circles a star nearly 40 light-years from Earth, probably has little or no atmosphere, a new study suggests.

JPL-Caltech/NASA

By Sid Perkins

A rocky planet that circles a small star nearly 40 light-years from Earth is hot and has little or no atmosphere, a new study suggests. The finding raises questions about the possibility of atmospheres on the other orbs in the planetary system.