Kepler-1008 b

Astrophysical Synthesis & Habitability Characterization

Kepler-1008 b is a confirmed super-earth exoplanet orbiting the star Kepler-1008, located approximately 921.6 light-years (282.57 parsecs) from the Solar System. First announced in 2016 by Kepler using the Transit detection technique (producing an estimated primary transit depth of 0.0226% across the stellar disk), this world measures 1.28 Earth radii and has a measured mass of 2.18 Earth masses. Combining its mass and radius yields a mean bulk density of 5.73 g/cm³ (a terrestrial silicate-iron composition comparable to Earth (5.51 g/cm³)), a surface gravity of 1.33 g⊕ (13.04 m/s²), and an escape velocity of 14.6 km/s.

In its orbital architecture around Kepler-1008, Kepler-1008 b completes one full revolution every 12.439 Earth days at a semi-major axis of 0.09755 AU (orbiting interior to Mercury's 0.387 AU benchmark in the Solar System). Its mean orbital velocity is approximately 85.3 km/s (compared to Earth's 29.8 km/s). The orbit is modeled as circular (e = 0.00), maintaining a constant stellar distance throughout its year.

⚠️ Thermal Regime (Irradiated / Hot Zone): At an equilibrium temperature of 627 K (+354°C / +669°F) and receiving 35.41 S⊕ (~48,190 W/m²), Kepler-1008 b orbits interior to the runaway greenhouse boundary where surface liquid water cannot persist.

The host star Kepler-1008 is classified as a stellar host with an effective photospheric temperature of 5,066 K, a radius of 0.78 R☉, a mass of 0.81 M☉, an estimated bolometric luminosity of 0.36 L☉. Stellar evolution modeling indicates an estimated stellar age of 6.76 Gyr and a metallicity of [Fe/H] = -0.01 dex (near-solar heavy-element abundance). From Earth, Kepler-1008 shines at apparent V-band magnitude 13.59 (faint and requiring research-grade or CCD telescopic photometry) in the Northern celestial hemisphere.

Discovery Facility: Kepler · Catalogue Source: NASA Exoplanet Archive (IPAC / Caltech).