Finding new planets are a dime a dozen these days, but every new planet found adds more to our understanding of exo-planets, or planets outside of our solar system orbiting other stars. Most of these are gas giants, but more and more are Earth-like. Astronomers have recently discovered K2-229b, which has a radius slightly large than Earth's, but a mass much larger, meaning it has a much greater density, more similar to Mercury's density in our own Solar System.
Astronomers Find Super-Earth with Mercury-Like Composition: K2-229b
Mercury has a much larger core than is expected for a planet of its size. The best explanation is that Mercury was impacted by another planet sized object early in its formation, stripping the outer layers from Mercury, leaving the denser core intact. Thus Mercury has a larger density. Did the same thing happen in this Solar System to K2-229b? Possibly.
This planet is highly unlikely to contain any life given that it is very close to its star, with an orbital period of just 14 hours. This means one side of the planet always faces the star and temperatures can reach a few thousand degrees! Yikes!!! This planet may not be habitable, but it sure is interesting!
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