--- title: "Scientists: This Massive Gas Planet Should Not Exist" description: "A team of astronomers spotted a gigantic Jupiter-like world orbiting a relatively tiny star. It's way too big to be orbiting the star." date: "2019-09-27" modified: "2019-09-27" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/scientists-gas-giant-should-not-exist" categories: - "Science & Energy" tags: - "gas giants" - "jupiter" - "red dwarf" - "the digest" --- # Scientists: This Massive Gas Planet Should Not Exist ![]() *\Image: NASA/Victor Tangermann\* ## Big Planet, Tiny Star A team of astronomers have spotted a gigantic, Jupiter-like world orbiting a relatively tiny star some 39 light-years away. The star, called GJ 3512, is a red dwarf. That's by far the most common type of star in the Milky Way — but the massive size of this one's orbiting gas giant has astronomers surprised*.* "It's exciting because we've wondered for long a time whether giant planets like Jupiter and Saturn can form around such small stars," Peter Wheatley, a professor at the University of Warwick in the UK, who was not involved with the latest study, [told the *BBC*](). ## Gas Giants The discovery was detailed in [a paper]() published in the journal *Science* today*.* The findings run against the widely-held theory of "core accretion": that an orbiting planet grows by drawing gas from a surrounding disc of gas surrounding the star. This particular planet, however, wouldn't have had enough gas to draw from. "Instead, they consider it more likely that the planet formed suddenly when part of the disc collapsed due to its own gravity," Wheatley told the *BBC*. ## Super-Earth What makes this case even more unusual is its relative size. The difference between the Jupiter-like object's and its star's size is much smaller than the difference between the Sun and Jupiter. The star is only 270 times more massive than the planet, whereas the Sun is 1,050 times more massive than Jupiter, as the *BBC* points out. **READ MORE:** [Giant planet around tiny star 'should not exist']() \[*BBC*\] **More on gas giants:** *[Scientists Spot Distant Gas Giant Still Forming New Moons]()* ## 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]()