It rains glass, and it smells like rotten eggs. A unique discovery by astronomers

Scientists HD 189733 b was discovered in 2005 and shortly thereafter dubbed a “hot Jupiter.” The exoplanet has a similar chemical composition to Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system, but is characterized by extremely high temperatures. Because it is only 64 light-years from Earth, it has quickly become one of the best-studied exoplanets.

Thanks to this, we know that the planet is about 10 percent larger than Jupiter, but it is hotter because it is 13 times closer to its star than Mercury is to our sun, and takes only about two Earth days to complete its orbit. This proximity to the star causes the planet to become unstable. The average temperature is a scorching 926 degrees Celsius, with strong winds and glassy rain as well. (Violent vortices in the atmosphere lift up many silicon particles, which, once dispersed, begin to fall again, creating the impression of falling glass rain.)

Now, thanks to new data from the James Webb Space Telescope, we know that. Another interesting feature of HD 189733 b is its unique smell. Or more specifically…its foul smell.Because the exoplanet smells like rotten eggs, as we read about in a publication in Nature.