WASP-1b is an
extrasolar planet orbiting the
star
A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...
WASP-1 located 1,300
light-year
A light-year, alternatively spelled light year, is a large unit of length used to express astronomical distances and is equivalent to about 9.46 trillion kilometers (), or 5.88 trillion miles ().One trillion here is taken to be 1012 ...
s away in the
constellation
A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms Asterism (astronomy), a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object.
The origins of the e ...
Andromeda.
Orbit and mass
The planet's mass and radius indicate that it is a
gas giant with a similar bulk composition to
Jupiter. Unlike Jupiter, but similar to many other planets detected around other stars, WASP-1b is located very close to its star, and belongs to the class of planets known as
hot Jupiters.
WASP-1 b was discovered via the
transit method by
SuperWASP, for which the star and planet are named. Follow-up radial velocity measurements confirmed the presence of an unseen companion, and allowed for the mass of WASP-1 b to be determined.
In 2018, it was discovered by observation of
Rossiter-McLaughlin effect what the orbit of WASP-1b is strongly misaligned with rotational axis of the star by 79.0 degrees, making it a nearly "polar" orbit.
See also
*
HD 209458 b
*
WASP-2b
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
*
BBC News articleWASP Planets
{{DEFAULTSORT:WASP-1b
Exoplanets discovered by WASP
Exoplanets discovered in 2006
Giant planets
Hot Jupiters
Transiting exoplanets
Andromeda (constellation)