Kepler-1441 b

Astrophysical Synthesis & Habitability Characterization

Kepler-1441 b is a confirmed super-earth exoplanet orbiting the star Kepler-1441, located approximately 3621.9 light-years (1110.48 parsecs) from the Solar System. First announced in 2016 by Kepler using the Transit detection technique (producing an estimated primary transit depth of 0.0144% across the stellar disk), this world measures 1.31 Earth radii and has a measured mass of 2.27 Earth masses. Combining its mass and radius yields a mean bulk density of 5.57 g/cm³ (a terrestrial silicate-iron composition comparable to Earth (5.51 g/cm³)), a surface gravity of 1.32 g⊕ (12.94 m/s²), and an escape velocity of 14.7 km/s.

In its orbital architecture around Kepler-1441, Kepler-1441 b completes one full revolution every 39.442 Earth days at a semi-major axis of 0.2346 AU (orbiting interior to Mercury's 0.387 AU benchmark in the Solar System). Its mean orbital velocity is approximately 64.7 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 682 K (+409°C / +768°F) and receiving 33.05 S⊕ (~44,976 W/m²), Kepler-1441 b orbits interior to the runaway greenhouse boundary where surface liquid water cannot persist.

The host star Kepler-1441 is classified as a stellar host with an effective photospheric temperature of 5,802 K, a radius of 1 R☉, a mass of 1 M☉, an estimated bolometric luminosity of 1.017 L☉. Stellar evolution modeling indicates an estimated stellar age of 3.89 Gyr and a metallicity of [Fe/H] = 0.01 dex (near-solar heavy-element abundance). From Earth, Kepler-1441 shines at apparent V-band magnitude 14.29 (faint and requiring research-grade or CCD telescopic photometry) in the Northern celestial hemisphere.

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