""I remember after we got the data down, our collective reaction was 'What the heck is this?' It's extremely different from what we expected," said Peter Gao of the Carnegie Earth and Planets Laboratory in Washington, a co-author on the study. The researchers found an exoplanet dubbed PSR J2322-2650b that orbits a small, dense star emitting electromagnetic radiation known as a pulsar."
"The exoplanet's proximity to the pulsar and its intense gravitational pull have distorted it into an oblong lemon shape. More unusually, PSR J2322-2650b also has a unique atmosphere comprised mostly of helium and carbon. "Instead of finding the normal molecules we expect to see on an exoplanet - like water, methane, and carbon dioxide - we saw molecular carbon," principal investigator Michael Zhang of University of Chicago said. Given its strange atmosphere, the team isn't certain how the exoplanet formed."
An exoplanet named PSR J2322-2650b orbits a small, dense pulsar in a black widow system. The planet's proximity and the pulsar's gravity have stretched it into an oblong, lemon-like shape. Observations with the James Webb Space Telescope revealed an atmosphere composed mainly of helium and carbon, lacking typical molecules such as water, methane, and carbon dioxide. Detection of molecular carbon in the atmosphere contradicts known planetary formation mechanisms and renders the planet's origin uncertain. The extreme carbon enrichment defies existing models of how such a body could form.
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