JWST Captures First Direct Image Af A Planet Outside Our Solar System@TheCosmosNews

#thecosmosnews NASA s James Webb releases first direct image of a planet outside our solar system NASA S James Web Telescope has released an image of the exoplanet HIP 65426 b using longer infrared wavelengths to reveal new details that ground-based telescopes couldn’t detect. Astronomers have captured the first direct image of an exoplanet with the James Webb Space Telescope. The exoplanet, or planet outside of our solar system, is a gas giant about six to 12 times the mass of Jupiter. The planet, called HIP 65426 b, is about 15 to 20 million years old -- just a baby planet when compared to cEarth, which is 4.5 billion years old. It s located about 385 light-years away from Earth. The planet can be seen in four different bands of infrared light as taken by Webb s different instruments. Webb sees the universe in infrared light, which is invisible to the human eye -- and makes it the perfect space observatory to reveal details about distant worlds. "This is a transformative moment, not only for Webb but also for astronomy generally," said Sasha Hinkley, associate professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom, in a statement. Hinkley led the observations within an international collaboration. The exoplanet was first discovered in 2017 using the European Southern Observatory s Very Large Telescope and its SPHERE instrument, located in Chile. The instrument took images of the planet then through short infrared wavelengths, but Webb s ability to see longer infrared wavelengths can shed light on new details.