HD 34445 b is an extrasolar planet

Extrasolar planet

An extrasolar planet, or exoplanet, is a planet outside the Solar System. A total of such planets have been identified as of . It is now known that a substantial fraction of stars have planets, including perhaps half of all Sun-like stars...

 which orbits the G-type star

Star

A star is a massive, luminous sphere of plasma held together by gravity. At the end of its lifetime, a star can also contain a proportion of degenerate matter. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth...

 HD 34445

HD 34445

HD 34445 is a 7th magnitude G-type star located approximately 152 light years away in the constellation Orion. This star is larger, hotter, brighter, and more massive than our Sun. Also its metal content is 40% greater than the Sun. In 2004, a gas giant planet was found in orbit around the star...

, located approximately 152 light years away in the constellation

Constellation

In modern astronomy, a constellation is an internationally defined area of the celestial sphere. These areas are grouped around asterisms, patterns formed by prominent stars within apparent proximity to one another on Earth's night sky....

 Orion

Orion (constellation)

Orion, often referred to as The Hunter, is a prominent constellation located on the celestial equator and visible throughout the world. It is one of the most conspicuous, and most recognizable constellations in the night sky...

. This planet was discovered in 2004 and finally confirmed in 2009. This planet has a minimum mass

Minimum mass

In astronomy, minimum mass is the lower-bound calculated mass of observed objects such as planets, stars and binary systems, nebulae, and black holes. Minimum mass is a widely cited statistic for extrasolar planets...

 two-thirds that of Jupiter

Jupiter

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...

 and orbits about 2 AU

Astronomical unit

An astronomical unit is a unit of length equal to about or approximately the mean Earth–Sun distance....

 from the parent star. However this planet orbits in a very eccentric path. The planet’s distance from the star ranges from 0.86 to 3.16 AU.

See also

Other planets that were discovered or confirmed on November 13, 2009:

• HD 126614 Ab
  HD 126614 Ab
  HD 126614 Ab, or simply HD 126614 b, is an extrasolar planet which orbits the primary K-type star HD 126614 A, located approximately 236 light years away in the constellation Taurus. It was discovered on November 13, 2009. However, this planet has a highly eccentric orbit around its parent star...
  
  
• HD 24496 Ab
  HD 24496 Ab
  HD 24496 Ab, or simply HD 24496 b, is an extrasolar planet which orbits the G-type star HD 24496 A, located approximately 160 light years away in the constellation Taurus. This is a wide-orbiting saturnian planet discovered on November 13, 2009...
  
  
• HD 13931 b
  HD 13931 b
  HD 13931 b is an extrasolar planet which orbits the G-type star HD 13931, located approximately 144 light years away in the constellation Andromeda. This planet takes 11.55 years to orbit the star at the average distance of 5.15 AU or 770 Gm. The planet’s eccentricity is about the same as Earth...
  
  
• Gliese 179 b
  Gliese 179 b
  Gliese 179 b is an extrasolar planet which orbits the M-type main sequence star Gliese 179, located approximately 40 light years away in the constellation Orion. This planet has a minimum mass a little bit less than Jupiter and it orbits at 2.41 AU or 361 Gm from the star with an eccentricity...
  
  
• QS Virginis b