This illustration shows a night-side view of the exoplanet WASP-76b. The ultra-hot giant exoplanet has a day side where temperatures climb above 2400 degrees Celsius, high enough to vaporise metals. Strong winds carry iron vapour to the cooler night side where it condenses into iron droplets. To the left of the image, we see the evening border of the exoplanet, where it transitions from day to night.

Martin Kornmesser created the digital painting in Photoshop, I provided the volumetric elements created in Cinema 4D (Turbulence FD) and Terragen.

Credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser/L. Calçada

Back to Top