The new study, published in Nature Astronomy, found that silicon monoxide gas is present in the atmosphere of exoplanet WASP-121b or ‘Tylos’. This is the first and only time the gas has been detected in the atmosphere of any planet – including those in our solar system and the exoplanets beyond.

The research was led by University of Newcastle astronomer Dr Tom Evans-Soma in collaboration with Institutes from across the world. The team observed Tylos continuously for 40 hours using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. The exoplanet was discovered in 2015 and is one of the thousands of exoplanets that have been discovered during the past 30 years.

Over the forty hour observation, 3,500 exposures were captured by the space telescope, about one a minute. Tylos was recorded reaching temperatures over 2,500 degrees Celsius, making it one of the hottest planets that has been discovered.

This research is part of the overarching quest to understand how our own planetary system originated and evolved over time.