Planet Facts

Gj-504b

GJ 504b is a unique exoplanet because of how it looks and what it is made of. People call it the “pink planet” since it shows up as a bright magenta color in infrared pictures. This color comes from its heat and the clouds in its atmosphere. Most exoplanets are found by looking at how they affect their stars, but GJ 504b was actually seen directly by astronomers. This makes it easier to learn about what it is like. GJ 504b is about 3 to 4 times heavier than Jupiter, but it is much cooler than most gas giants its size, with a temperature around 500°F (260°C). It also has a huge orbit, about 40 times farther from its star than Earth is from the Sun. This means a year on GJ 504b would last for hundreds of Earth years. Scientists are interested in GJ 504b because they are not sure how old it is. If it is young, it formed like other gas giants, but if it is older, it could mean we need to rethink how planets form. This makes GJ 504b important for learning about space.