Ice planet
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An ice planet or icy planet is a type of planet with an icy surface of volatiles such as water, ammonia, and methane. Ice planets consist of a global cryosphere.
Under a
Characteristics and habitability
An ice planet's surface can be composed of water, methane, ammonia, carbon dioxide (known as "dry ice"), carbon monoxide, nitrogen, and other volatiles, depending on its surface temperature. Ice planets would have surface temperatures below 260 K (−13 °C) if composed primarily of water, below 180 K (−93 °C) if primarily composed of CO2 and ammonia, and below 80 K (−193 °C) if composed primarily of methane.
On the surface, ice planets are hostile to life forms like those living on Earth because they are extremely cold. Many ice worlds likely have
Objects and candidates
Although there are many icy objects in the
There are several extrasolar ice planet candidates, including OGLE-2005-BLG-390Lb, OGLE-2013-BLG-0341LB b and MOA-2007-BLG-192Lb.
See also
References
- EurekAlert!. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
- ^ Shekhtman, Lonnie; et al. (18 June 2020). "Are Planets with Oceans Common in the Galaxy? It's Likely, NASA Scientists Find". NASA. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
- ^ Stern, Alan; Mitton, Jacqueline (2005). "Pluto and Charon: ice worlds on the ragged edge of the solar system". Weinheim: Wiley-VCH. Retrieved July 13, 2013.
- ^ Emily Lakdawalla et al., What Is A Planet? The Planetary Society, 21 April 2020