---
title: "Scientists Just Found a Hellish Exoplanet Shaped Like a Football"
description: "Astronomers have found that a distant exoplanet is so drawn by the gravitational pull from its host star, it's being deformed into the shape of a football."
date: "2019-08-01"
modified: "2019-08-01"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/exoplanet-shaped-football"
categories:
  - "Science & Energy"
tags:
  - "exoplanet"
  - "hot Jupiters"
  - "hubble space teleescope"
  - "the digest"
---

# Scientists Just Found a Hellish Exoplanet Shaped Like a Football

![Astronomers have found that a distant exoplanet is so drawn by the gravitational pull from its host star, it's being deformed into the shape of a football.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/exoplanet-shaped-football.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: NASA/Victor Tangermann\</em\>*

## Football Exoplanet

An international team of astronomers [has found](<https://phys.org/news/2019-08-distant-heavy-metal-gas-planet.html>) a distant exoplanet that's being deformed into the shape of a football by the brutal gravitational pull of its host star.

"This planet is a prototype for ultra-hot Jupiters," said Drake Deming, astronomy professor at the University of Maryland and co-author of [a paper](<https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-3881/ab2986>) about the bizarre planet that was published today in the *Astronomical Journal,* [in a statement](<https://phys.org/news/2019-08-distant-heavy-metal-gas-planet.html>). "These planets are so heavily irradiated by their host stars, they're almost like stars themselves."

## Hell Planet

The extremely hot planet, called WASP-121b, was discovered in a star system 90 light-years away in 2015 by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. But new insights about the planet are leaving astronomers scratching their heads.

"The planet is being evaporated by its host star to the point that we can see metal atoms escaping the upper atmosphere where they can interact with the planet's magnetic field," said Deming. "This presents an opportunity to observe and understand some very interesting physics."

## Hottest Jupiter

Hot Jupiters are a class of giant gas planets that orbit extremely closely their star and heat up to blazing temperatures as a result. But WASP-121b is a particularly extreme example at 4,600 degrees Fahrenheit.

"Although they're rare, they really stand out once you've found them," Deming added.

**READ MORE:** [Distant 'heavy metal' gas planet is shaped like a football](<https://phys.org/news/2019-08-distant-heavy-metal-gas-planet.html>) \[University of Maryland\]

**More on exoplanets:** *[NASA Just Released an Incredible Map of All Known Exoplanets](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-incredible-map-4000-exoplanets>)*

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)