OGLE-2005-BLG-169Lb
Encyclopedia
OGLE-2005-BLG-169Lb 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...

 located approximately 2700 parsec
Parsec
The parsec is a unit of length used in astronomy. It is about 3.26 light-years, or just under 31 trillion kilometres ....

s 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....

 of Sagittarius
Sagittarius (constellation)
Sagittarius is a constellation of the zodiac, the one containing the galactic center. Its name is Latin for the archer, and its symbol is , a stylized arrow. Sagittarius is commonly represented as a centaur drawing a bow...

, orbiting the star OGLE-2005-BLG-169L
OGLE-2005-BLG-169L
OGLE-2005-BLG-169L is a dim and distant magnitude 20 galactic bulge star located about 2,700 parsecs away in the constellation Sagittarius. If it is a main sequence star, then it is most likely a red dwarf with about half of the mass of the Sun...

. This planet was discovered by the OGLE
Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment
The Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment or OGLE is a Polish astronomical project based at the University of Warsaw that is chiefly concerned with discovering dark matter using the microlensing technique. Since the project began in 1992, it has discovered several extrasolar planets as a side...

 project using the gravitational microlensing method. Based on a most likely mass for the host star of 0.49 solar mass, the planet has a mass of 13 times that of Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...

. Its mass and estimated temperature are close to those of Uranus
Uranus
Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. It has the third-largest planetary radius and fourth-largest planetary mass in the Solar System. It is named after the ancient Greek deity of the sky Uranus , the father of Cronus and grandfather of Zeus...

. It is speculated that this planet may either be an ice giant
Ice giant
Ice Giant or Ice giants may refer to:* A type of gas giant composed largely of materials less volatile than hydrogen and helium* The frost giants of Norse mythology, see also Hrimthurs...

like Uranus, or a "naked super-Earth" with a solid icy or rocky surface.

External links

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