James Webb reveals cold giant planet six times the size of Jupiter

Mere 12 light-years from our planet, the powerful James Webb Space Telescope revealed the presence of a massive planet whose mass is six times that of Jupiter. The gigantic globe is exceptionally bright and cold.

This extraordinary world is characterised by exceptional brightness coupled with low temperatures. Close to us at just 12 light-years away, the James Webb Space Telescope has inspired scientists with hope, providing images of a planet whose mass significantly exceeds that of Jupiter. This remarkable world combines polar features: brightness with cold.

As reported by experts from the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) made a significant discovery. The object orbits a star categorised as an orange dwarf, which was suspected of having a giant planet in its system, but until now, lacked strong evidence. The JWST provided it, presenting images of this planetary giant.

Epsilon Indi A turned out to be a cosmic monster, with a mass six times exceeding that of Jupiter – towering over all other known bodies in our Solar System. Furthermore, its brightness does not correspond with high temperatures; despite its immense size, it is relatively cool, maintaining a temperature of about 2 degrees Celsius. The distance separating it from its star is 2,235 million kilometres (1,396 million miles), which is about 15 times greater than the distance from the Earth to the Sun. One complete orbit around its star spans several decades.

Observations suggest that this world might be the only giant in the entire star system. Detailed results of these observations were published in the journal "Nature".