‘Death planet’ named Wasp-18b leaves scientists baffled with its mysterious gas atmosphere that’s never been seen before

WASP-18b is 325 light years from earth and is surrounded by a thick stratosphere of carbon monoxide, with no water.
It would be impossible for life to be supported on the hellish planet, with nothing like it previously discovered by scientists.
The “death planet” is believed to orbit incredibly close to its star making it staggeringly hot with nothing to stop it being bombarded by deadly radiation.
The giant planet has a mass 10 times that of Jupiter — the largest gas world in our solar system.

Researchers from Nasa’s Goddard Space Flight Centre have been analysing observations made by the Hubble and Spitzer space telescopes.
Kyle Sheppard of NASA said: “The composition of WASP-18b defies all expectations.
“We don’t know of any other extrasolar planet where carbon monoxide so completely dominates the upper atmosphere.”

Nikku Madhusu of the University of Cambridge said: “The only consistent explanation for the data is an overabundance of carbon monoxide and very little water vapour in the atmosphere of WASP-18b, in addition to the presence of a stratosphere.
“This rare combination of factors opens a new window into our understanding of physicochemical processes in exoplanetary atmospheres.”
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