The Dec. 2 issue of "Science" contains a report about a recently discovered bizarre little planet, located about 31 light years or nine parsecs from Earth, which has astronomers excited about their findings. Planet GJ367b is about three-fourths the size of our planet but its estimated average density is close to that of iron.
The planet is thought to consist mostly of iron surrounded by a thin layer of rock and a very thin atmosphere. It orbits its sun, a red dwarf star, once every eight hours, and is so close to its sun that the planet's surface has a daytime temperature of around 1,500 degrees Celsius, or about 2,700 degrees Fahrenheit, which is almost hot enough to cause the iron to melt. If GJ367b does have an atmosphere, its composition could consist of material that has boiled off the planet's surface.
