Webb Reveals Day-Night Divide on Exoplanet

The James Webb Space Telescope has uncovered wild atmospheric secrets on exoplanet WASP-121 b, revealing stark differences between its dawn and dusk sides—something only theorized before. By watching starlight filter through the planet’s atmosphere during transit, scientists detected an asymmetry best explained by temperature and chemical variations, with water molecules breaking apart in hotter zones and winds pushing heat toward the evening side. Models captured the general trend but fell short, hinting at mineral clouds cooling the morning side more than expected. This breakthrough technique is now being applied to other extreme exoplanets, helping us map the 3D atmospheres of worlds light-years away. Support the show:Get a discount at https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/f0b36a867bd20a5d