HD 37605 b
HD 37605 b is a cold gas giant orbiting the K0 star HD 37605 in the constellation Orion. It lies about 153 light-years from Earth and was discovered in 2004 using the radial velocity method.
Is HD 37605 b in the Habitable Zone?
HD 37605 b orbits inside the inner edge of the habitable zone of HD 37605. So close to its star, surface conditions are far too hot for liquid water.
Habitable zone of HD 37605: 0.598–1.428 AU (conservative: 0.757–1.354 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 37605 b — one full orbit around HD 37605 — lasts 55.0 Earth days, shorter than Mercury's 88-day year. It orbits at an average distance of 0.277 AU — closer to its star than Mercury is to the Sun. Its orbit is highly elliptical (eccentricity 0.67), swinging dramatically closer to and farther from its star.
How Was HD 37605 b Discovered?
HD 37605 b was discovered in 2004 using the radial velocity method, with observations from McDonald 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 37605 b?
HD 37605 b is 152.6 light-years (46.8 parsecs) from Earth. Light arriving here tonight left the planet around the year 1874. A probe traveling at the speed of Voyager 1 — about 17 km/s, the fastest outbound spacecraft ever launched — would need roughly 2,685,760 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 37605 b scores 0.16, ranking #4,172 of 5,568 planets with a known ESI. For reference, Mars scores about 0.70.
The Host Star: HD 37605
HD 37605
- Spectral type
- K0
- Surface temperature
- 5,329 K (Sun: 5,772 K)
- Mass
- 0.94 M☉
- Radius
- 0.91 R☉
- Luminosity
- 0.6026 L☉
- Age
- 5.7 billion years (Sun: 4.6)
The HD 37605 Planetary System
HD 37605 b is one of 2 known planets in the HD 37605 system. Its siblings:
- HD 37605 c (Cold Gas Giant)
HD 37605 b — Complete Data
| Mass (best estimate) | 854.96 Earth masses |
|---|---|
| Orbital period | 55.01 days |
| Orbital distance | 0.277 AU |
| Eccentricity | 0.675 |
| Earth Similarity Index | 0.16 |
| Distance from Earth | 152.6 light-years (46.8 parsecs) |
| Constellation | Orion |
| Discovery method | Radial Velocity |
| Discovery facility | McDonald Observatory |
| Discovery year | 2004 |
Data: NASA Exoplanet Archive, last updated 2018-09-25. Earth Similarity Index: PHL @ UPR Arecibo.
Frequently Asked Questions About HD 37605 b
Is HD 37605 b habitable?
No — HD 37605 b orbits too close to its star and is too hot for liquid water to exist on its surface.
How far away is HD 37605 b?
HD 37605 b is about 153 light-years from Earth in the constellation Orion. A spacecraft traveling as fast as Voyager 1 (about 17 km/s) would need roughly 2,685,760 years to get there.
How long is a year on HD 37605 b?
One orbit around HD 37605 takes 55.0 Earth days.
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