Lonely Planet Without A Star

By Douglas V. Gibbs

Astronomers are excited about an occurrence in space that would otherwise be thought of as being the wild imaginations of a science fiction writer.  Drifting without a star to orbit, PSO J318.5-22 is probably a gas-giant.  Young, only about 12 million years old, according to scientists, the planet exists in solitary about 80 light years from Earth.

Never before has scientists been able to study an object free-floating in space, like this lonely planet.  Even better, without a host star in the way, it will be easier for astronomers to study it.

All alone, the planet confirms to those that wondered if there are objects in space drifting in solitude.  Now, stargazers know that such bodies exist.  And though thousands of planets have been discovered, only a few have been imaged directly.  However, all of those bodies outside our solar system that we have pictures of orbit a sun.  The solitary planet, though alone, shares with those planets many similarities, while at the same time it is easier to observe because the light of the brighter host stars that other planets orbit is not a factor.

Discovered in data from a telescope on Maui, Hawaii, while searching for failed stars, the lonely planet was found by pure chance.  Six times the mass of Jupiter, the floating planet was identified by its faint, and unique, heat signature, and its red color.

The planet was monitored for two years, and it was determined to be within the Beta Pictoris group of young, 12 million year old, stars.  This planet, however, follows a solitary course, unattached to any star, and any group of objects.

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Lonely, young planet drifting in space without a star - CNN