A Star That Has Clouds?

This is weird, ATS as astronomers have found a star with its own clouds; actually, it's a Brown Dwarf with a reported temperature below freezing but the concept is way cool.

Astronomers have reportedly discovered signs of water clouds 7.3 light-years away from Earth.

The water clouds would be the first to be found beyond our solar system, if the discovery is confirmed. The findings will be published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

Kevin Luhman, an astronomer at Pennsylvania State University, University Park, found the clouds with images taken from 2010 to 2011 by NASA's WISE infrared telescope. The clouds surround a brown dwarf — a.k.a. a "failed star" that has faded and cooled — named WISE J0855-0714. WISE J0855-0714 is the coldest brown dwarf known to scientists, with a temperature lower than water's freezing point.

The headline of the article concerns the fact that clouds with water vapor were found outside of the solar system, but the most important thing in my opinion is the fact that this Star has clouds! I find this very interesting. What says ATS?

theweek.com...

a reply to: lostbook

I've known for a while that there is water in space, but it's cool to hear of a cloud formation that's relatively close.

a reply to: lostbook

It is an amazing find Would be interesting if there are any microbes present within the liquid... Wonder if it the cloud is a byproduct of the Star cooling.

NAMASTE*******

Well, someone's gotta do this....It's Nibiru-planet x.. Oh goodie, new doom porn!

a reply to: lostbook

WISE J0855-0714 is the coldest brown dwarf known to scientists, with a temperature lower than water's freezing point.

So then the highest clouds are water ice. Like cirrus clouds in earths atmosphere?

Kinda cool.

a reply to: lostbook

A brown dwarf is not exactly a star.

It is sometimes called a "failed star" because there is no nuclear fusion going on. Because there is no fusion, it is relatively very cold compared to "real" stars, maybe only 300 to 500 degrees F (150 to 260 C).

originally posted by: Soylent Green Is People
a reply to: lostbook

A brown dwarf is not exactly a star.

It is sometimes called a "failed star" because there is no nuclear fusion going on. Because there is no fusion, it is relatively very cold compared to "real" stars, maybe only 300 to 500 degrees F (150 to 260 C).

Thanks for the info.

On a side note, why isn't Jupiter a Brown Dwarf? I thought it is a failed Star also.

a reply to: lostbook

Found an answer of why Jupiter is not a brown dwarf for you.

Second question down on the linked page.

Linky here

Jupiter is not a failed star or a Brown Dwarf. It is a gas giant planet. Brown Dwarfs are objects that are between 10 and 100 times more massive than Jupiter. They are not large enough to sustain Hydrogen fusion in the cores, this is why they are sometimes called failed stars. In order for Jupiter to be considered a Brown Dwarf it would need to get at least 10 times more mass than it currently has.

originally posted by: lostbook
This is weird, ATS as astronomers have found a star with its own clouds; actually, it's a Brown Dwarf with a reported temperature below freezing but the concept is way cool.

It's not really a star. It's a brown dwarf. Failed star yes. Thermonuclear fusion ball of hydrogen it is not. It's actually colder than the ice cubes in your freezer.

originally posted by: Bronagh
a reply to: lostbook

Found an answer of why Jupiter is not a brown dwarf for you.

Second question down on the linked page.

Linky here

Jupiter is not a failed star or a Brown Dwarf. It is a gas giant planet. Brown Dwarfs are objects that are between 10 and 100 times more massive than Jupiter. They are not large enough to sustain Hydrogen fusion in the cores, this is why they are sometimes called failed stars. In order for Jupiter to be considered a Brown Dwarf it would need to get at least 10 times more mass than it currently has.

That's simplistic. There are planets that are 12-15 times the mass of Jupiter which are planets, not brown dwarfs but it's mostly right.

originally posted by: JadeStar

originally posted by: lostbook
This is weird, ATS as astronomers have found a star with its own clouds; actually, it's a Brown Dwarf with a reported temperature below freezing but the concept is way cool.

It's not really a star. It's a brown dwarf. Failed star yes. Thermonuclear fusion ball of hydrogen it is not. It's actually colder than the ice cubes in your freezer.

Wow. Well, thanks for that info, Jade. I thought something different. That's what I get for thinking.......

originally posted by: lostbook

originally posted by: JadeStar

originally posted by: lostbook
This is weird, ATS as astronomers have found a star with its own clouds; actually, it's a Brown Dwarf with a reported temperature below freezing but the concept is way cool.

It's not really a star. It's a brown dwarf. Failed star yes. Thermonuclear fusion ball of hydrogen it is not. It's actually colder than the ice cubes in your freezer.

Wow. Well, thanks for that info, Jade. I thought something different. That's what I get for thinking.......

It's good to think, and as a wise philosopher named George Clinton once said "It ain't illegal yet."

a reply to: lostbook

We can detect water clouds around another star yet we cant find ET.

meh..

Actually, WISE 0855–0714 is so small (being just 3 to 10 Jupiter masses), that it's better described as a sub-brown dwarf. That makes it even less of a star, although sub-brown dwarfs and brown dwarfs form in the same way as proper stars, by gravitational collapse of a gas cloud.

It's not the only brown dwarf where clouds were detected.

Recent observations of known brown dwarf candidates have revealed a pattern of brightening and dimming of infrared emissions that suggests relatively cool, opaque cloud patterns obscuring a hot interior that is stirred by extreme winds. The weather on such bodies is thought to be extremely violent, comparable to but far exceeding Jupiter's famous storms.

On January 8, 2013 astronomers using NASA's Hubble and Spitzer space telescopes probed the stormy atmosphere of a brown dwarf named 2MASS J22282889-431026, creating the most detailed "weather map" of a brown dwarf thus far. It shows wind-driven, planet-sized clouds. The new research is a stepping stone toward a better understanding not only brown dwarfs, but also of the atmospheres of planets beyond the Solar System.

en.wikipedia.org...
hubblesite.org...

Wow, that's interesting, cant wait for pics! But also kinda weird, wouldn't it need an atmosphere so that clouds could build up? There's always something new we can learn about this amazing cosmos!

originally posted by: GreasyLobster
Wow, that's interesting, cant wait for pics!

These brown dwarfs are too far away from us to get any pictures of their surface features. All we can see is a dot of light, which we can measure in many various ways to determine its characteristics.

But also kinda weird, wouldn't it need an atmosphere so that clouds could build up?

Since stars and brown dwarfs are made of gasses, they are essentially one big atmosphere.

originally posted by: Xcathdra
a reply to: lostbook

We can detect water clouds around another star yet we cant find ET.

meh..

We can find ET. Its a money issue no a technical one.