The –est Astronomy

Scalding hot gas giant breaks heat records

KELT 9b’s temps soar higher than many stars

KELT 9b

SPACE SIZZLE  KELT 9b, the hottest known gas giant, is “pretty much something out of a science fiction novel,” says codiscoverer Scott Gaudi of Ohio State University.

R. Hurt/IPAC/JPL-Caltech/NASA

By Maria Temming

- More than 2 years ago

The planet KELT 9b is so hot — hotter than many stars — that it shatters gas giant temperature records, researchers report online June 5 in Nature.