Artist's concept of an exoplanet known as , orbiting a star called GJ 436
Artist's concept of an exoplanet known as , orbiting a star called GJ 436, which is located a mere 33 light-years away. Although probably rocky in composition like Earth, orbits scorchingly close to its star, so in all likelihood this planet lacks an atmosphere and might even have a molten surface, as shown in this artist's impression. Because of GJ 436's proximity to our solar system, the star field around it shares many of our culture's famous cosmic landmarks. To the far left, the constellation of Orion gleams, though in a distorted shape compared to our vantage point on Earth. The red giant Betelgeuse (Orion's right shoulder) and blue Rigel (Orion's left foot) stand out, as well as the three belt stars. From GJ 436's perspective, however, the stars do not align as they do in our sky. The Pleiades star cluster is located to the upper left of
Size: 5600px × 3150px
Photo credit: © Stocktrek Images / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
Keywords: 436, art, artwork, astronomical, astronomy, concept, constellation, cracked, discovery, dwarf, dwarfs, exoplanet, extrasolar, fiction, futuristic, gliese, horizontal, illustration, imagination, lava, magma, molten, objects, orbit, outdoors, planet, planetary, red, science, space, sphere, stars, surreal, systems, temperature, universe
