HD 68988 b
HD 68988 b is a hot Jupiter orbiting HD 68988 in the constellation Ursa Major. It lies about 198 light-years from Earth and was discovered in 2001 using the radial velocity method.
Is HD 68988 b in the Habitable Zone?
HD 68988 b orbits inside the inner edge of the habitable zone of HD 68988. So close to its star, surface conditions are far too hot for liquid water.
Habitable zone of HD 68988: 0.933–2.189 AU (conservative: 1.181–2.075 AU), per Kopparapu et al. (2014). Earth orbits the Sun at 1 AU.
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Orbit and Year Length
A year on HD 68988 b — one full orbit around HD 68988 — lasts 6.28 Earth days, shorter than Mercury's 88-day year. It orbits at an average distance of 0.070 AU — closer to its star than Mercury is to the Sun. Its orbit is mildly elliptical (eccentricity 0.12).
How Was HD 68988 b Discovered?
HD 68988 b was discovered in 2001 using the radial velocity method, with observations from Multiple Observatories.
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 68988 b?
HD 68988 b is 198.4 light-years (60.8 parsecs) from Earth. Light arriving here tonight left the planet around the year 1828. A probe traveling at the speed of Voyager 1 — about 17 km/s, the fastest outbound spacecraft ever launched — would need roughly 3,491,840 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 68988 b scores 0.07, ranking #4,941 of 5,568 planets with a known ESI. For reference, Mars scores about 0.70.
The Host Star: HD 68988
HD 68988
- Surface temperature
- 5,932 K (Sun: 5,772 K)
- Mass
- 1.28 M☉
- Radius
- 1.19 R☉
The HD 68988 Planetary System
HD 68988 b is one of 2 known planets in the HD 68988 system. Its siblings:
HD 68988 b — Complete Data
| Mass (best estimate) | 626.13 Earth masses |
|---|---|
| Orbital period | 6.28 days |
| Orbital distance | 0.070 AU |
| Eccentricity | 0.120 |
| Earth Similarity Index | 0.07 |
| Distance from Earth | 198.4 light-years (60.8 parsecs) |
| Constellation | Ursa Major |
| Discovery method | Radial Velocity |
| Discovery facility | Multiple Observatories |
| Discovery year | 2001 |
Data: NASA Exoplanet Archive, last updated 2018-09-04. Earth Similarity Index: PHL @ UPR Arecibo.
Frequently Asked Questions About HD 68988 b
Is HD 68988 b habitable?
No — HD 68988 b orbits too close to its star and is too hot for liquid water to exist on its surface.
How far away is HD 68988 b?
HD 68988 b is about 198 light-years from Earth in the constellation Ursa Major. A spacecraft traveling as fast as Voyager 1 (about 17 km/s) would need roughly 3,491,840 years to get there.
How long is a year on HD 68988 b?
One orbit around HD 68988 takes 6.3 Earth days — short enough that 58 of its years would fit into one Earth year.
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