CoRoT-20 c
Astrophysical Synthesis & Habitability Characterization
CoRoT-20 c is a confirmed gas giant exoplanet orbiting the star CoRoT-20, located approximately 2753 light-years (844.06 parsecs) from the Solar System. First announced in 2018 by Multiple Observatories using the Radial Velocity detection technique (measuring periodic Doppler reflex motion in the host star's spectrum), this world measures 12.2 Earth radii (1.09 Jupiter radii) and has a measured mass of 5403.11 Earth masses (17 Jupiter masses). Combining its mass and radius yields a mean bulk density of 16.41 g/cm³ (an iron-enriched, high-compression rocky core), a surface gravity of 36.3 g⊕ (355.98 m/s²), and an escape velocity of 235.4 km/s.
In its orbital architecture around CoRoT-20, CoRoT-20 c completes one full revolution every 1675 Earth days (4.59Julian years) at a semi-major axis of 2.9 AU (corresponding to the middle-system regime between Mars at 1.52 AU and Jupiter at 5.20 AU). Its mean orbital velocity is approximately 18.8 km/s (compared to Earth's 29.8 km/s). The planet follows a highly eccentric trajectory (e = 0.6, swinging from 1.16 AU at periapsis out to 4.64 AU at apoapsis), pointing to past dynamical scattering or secular gravitational perturbations.
❄️ Thermal Regime (Cryogenic Zone): With an equilibrium temperature of 168 K (-105°C / -157°F) and an incident flux of 0.18 S⊕ (~239 W/m²), surface water and volatile species on CoRoT-20 c would remain locked in cryogenic ice phases unless warmed by subsurface tidal or radiogenic heating.
The host star CoRoT-20 is classified as a solar-type yellow star of spectral type G2 V with an effective photospheric temperature of 5,880 K, a radius of 1.02 R☉, a mass of 1.14 M☉, an estimated bolometric luminosity of 1.116 L☉. Stellar evolution modeling indicates an estimated stellar age of 0.1 Gyr and a metallicity of [Fe/H] = 0.14 dex (metal-rich relative to the Sun). From Earth, CoRoT-20 shines at apparent V-band magnitude 14.63 (faint and requiring research-grade or CCD telescopic photometry) in the Northern celestial hemisphere. The CoRoT-20 system is a multi-planet architecture hosting 2 confirmed worlds, with CoRoT-20 c sharing its stellar neighborhood alongside CoRoT-20 b.
Methodology: Computed using the Schulze-Makuch et al. (2011) weighted metric comparing physical interior (radius, estimated density) and surface thermal regime (escape velocity, equilibrium temperature).
Discovery Facility: Multiple Observatories · Catalogue Source: NASA Exoplanet Archive (IPAC / Caltech).
☀️ Host Star Telemetry
| Host Star Name | CoRoT-20 |
| Spectral Type | G2 V |
| Effective Temp (Teff) | 5,880 K |
| Stellar Radius | 1.0200 R☉ |
| Stellar Mass | 1.1400 M☉ |
| Bolometric Luminosity | 1.116 L☉ |
| Metallicity [Fe/H] | 0.140 dex |
| Stellar Age | 0.100 Gyr |
| Apparent Magnitude | V: 14.630 · G: 14.469 |
| System Architecture | 1 Star, 2 Planets |
🪐 Orbital & Physical Dynamics
| Semi-Major Axis (a) | 2.900000 AU |
| Orbital Period | 1675 days |
| Mean Orbital Velocity | 18.8 km/s |
| Orbital Eccentricity (e) | 0.60000 |
| Orbital Inclination (i) | — |
| Mean Bulk Density | 16.41 g/cm³ (235.4 km/s vesc) |
| Insolation Flux | 0.1759 S⊕ (~239 W/m²) |
| Habitable Zone Status | Exterior / Non-HZ |
| Celestial Distance | 2753.000 LY (844.061 pc) |