HD 112640 b
HD 112640 b is a cold gas giant orbiting the K0 III star HD 112640 in the constellation Draco. It lies about 1,055 light-years from Earth and was discovered in 2020 using the radial velocity method.
Is HD 112640 b in the Habitable Zone?
HD 112640 b orbits inside the inner edge of the habitable zone of HD 112640. So close to its star, surface conditions are far too hot for liquid water.
Habitable zone of HD 112640: 13.606–34.175 AU (conservative: 17.234–32.401 AU), per Kopparapu et al. (2014). Earth orbits the Sun at 1 AU.
See the full interactive habitable-zone view in the Exoplanet Explorer app ›
Orbit and Year Length
A year on HD 112640 b — one full orbit around HD 112640 — lasts 613.2 Earth days, longer than an Earth year. It orbits at an average distance of 1.700 AU. Its orbit is mildly elliptical (eccentricity 0.24).
How Was HD 112640 b Discovered?
HD 112640 b was discovered in 2020 using the radial velocity method, with observations from Bohyunsan Optical Astronomical Observatory.
The radial velocity method measures the subtle wobble of a star caused by the gravitational pull of an orbiting planet, visible as periodic shifts in the star's light spectrum. The size of the wobble reveals the planet's minimum mass.
How Far Away Is HD 112640 b?
HD 112640 b is 1,054.6 light-years (323.3 parsecs) from Earth. Light arriving here tonight left the planet about 1,055 years ago. A probe traveling at the speed of Voyager 1 — about 17 km/s, the fastest outbound spacecraft ever launched — would need roughly 18,560,960 years to make the journey.
Earth Similarity Index
The Earth Similarity Index (ESI) scores how physically similar a planet is to Earth, from 0 to 1, based on radius, density, escape velocity and surface temperature. HD 112640 b scores 0.08, ranking #4,675 of 5,568 planets with a known ESI. For reference, Mars scores about 0.70.
The Host Star: HD 112640
HD 112640
- Spectral type
- K0 III
- Surface temperature
- 4,155 K (Sun: 5,772 K)
- Mass
- 1.80 M☉
- Radius
- 39.00 R☉
- Luminosity
- 283.4980 L☉
- Age
- 1.6 billion years (Sun: 4.6)
Planetary System
HD 112640 b is the only planet known to orbit HD 112640 so far.
HD 112640 b — Complete Data
| Mass (best estimate) | 1,589.15 Earth masses |
|---|---|
| Orbital period | 613.20 days |
| Orbital distance | 1.700 AU |
| Eccentricity | 0.240 |
| Earth Similarity Index | 0.08 |
| Distance from Earth | 1,054.6 light-years (323.3 parsecs) |
| Constellation | Draco |
| Discovery method | Radial Velocity |
| Discovery facility | Bohyunsan Optical Astronomical Observatory |
| Discovery year | 2020 |
Data: NASA Exoplanet Archive, last updated 2021-03-25. Earth Similarity Index: PHL @ UPR Arecibo.
Frequently Asked Questions About HD 112640 b
Is HD 112640 b habitable?
No — HD 112640 b orbits too close to its star and is too hot for liquid water to exist on its surface.
How far away is HD 112640 b?
HD 112640 b is about 1,055 light-years from Earth in the constellation Draco. A spacecraft traveling as fast as Voyager 1 (about 17 km/s) would need roughly 18,560,960 years to get there.
How long is a year on HD 112640 b?
One orbit around HD 112640 takes 613.2 Earth days.
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