WASP-63 b

Astrophysical Synthesis & Habitability Characterization

WASP-63 b is a confirmed gas giant exoplanet orbiting the star WASP-63, located approximately 948.1 light-years (290.68 parsecs) from the Solar System. First announced in 2012 by SuperWASP using the Transit detection technique (producing an estimated primary transit depth of 0.6069% across the stellar disk), this world measures 15.805 Earth radii (1.41 Jupiter radii) and has a measured mass of 117.597 Earth masses (0.37 Jupiter masses). Combining its mass and radius yields a mean bulk density of 0.16 g/cm³ (a low bulk density dominated by an extended hydrogen-helium gaseous envelope), a surface gravity of 0.47 g⊕ (4.61 m/s²), and an escape velocity of 30.5 km/s.

In its orbital architecture around WASP-63, WASP-63 b completes one full revolution every 4.378 Earth days at a semi-major axis of 0.0574 AU (orbiting interior to Mercury's 0.387 AU benchmark in the Solar System). Its mean orbital velocity is approximately 142.6 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 1470 K (+1197°C / +2187°F) and receiving 1,103.27 S⊕ (~1,501,552 W/m²), WASP-63 b orbits interior to the runaway greenhouse boundary where surface liquid water cannot persist.

The host star WASP-63 is classified as a stellar host with an effective photospheric temperature of 5,550 K, a radius of 1.86 R☉, a mass of 1.28 M☉, an estimated bolometric luminosity of 2.945 L☉. Stellar evolution modeling indicates an estimated stellar age of 8.3 Gyr and a metallicity of [Fe/H] = 0.08 dex (metal-rich relative to the Sun). From Earth, WASP-63 shines at apparent V-band magnitude 11.155 (faint and requiring research-grade or CCD telescopic photometry) in the Southern celestial hemisphere.

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