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Webb Discovers Methane, Carbon Dioxide in Atmosphere of K2-18 b - NASA

https://www.nasa.gov/universe/exoplanets/webb-discovers-methane-carbon-dioxide-in-atmosphere-of-k2-18-b/

A new investigation with NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope into K2-18 b, an exoplanet 8.6 times as massive as Earth, has revealed the presence of

Webb Discovers Methane, Carbon Dioxide in Atmosphere of K2-18 b - NASA

4 comments

The_Che_Banana

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So a planet this size 100kg would weigh? What?

hallettj

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The equation for force of gravity is F = GMm / r² where

G is the gravitational constant
M is the mass of the planet
m is the mass of the object being weighed
r is the radius of the planet / distance between the centers of mass of two objects

The equation shows that gravity scales linearly with mass, and scales inversely with the square of distance. The article says K2-18 b is 8.6 times Earth's mass, and 2.6 times Earth's radius. So the weight of a 100 kg mass would be:

F = 100 × 8.6 / (2.6)²

which works out to a weight of about 127 kg, or 1.27 times heavier.

The_Che_Banana

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Neat! Thanks!

eestileib

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I read this as "weeb discovers..." and was a little disappointed.