The James Webb Space Telescope Will Help NASA Learn More About a Hellish Planet That’s Located “Right Next-Door”

We would stop complaining about the bad weather on Earth as soon as we learn a bit about the terrible conditions on other planets. 55 Cancri e is one great example, meaning an exoplanet located 50 light-years away from Earth. For the unfathomable immensity of the Universe, that practically means that the planet is right next door.

55 Cancri e might be the proof atheists look for that Hell is real. We’re talking about an exoplanet that revolves around its host star at very close range – a lot closer than how Mercury orbits the Sun. That can only mean one thing: the temperatures on the exoplanet are far beyond what a human being would ever be able to withstand. According to Phys.org, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will have to take a closer look at the 55 Cancri e exoplanet to see what’s going on there in more detail.

JWST will reveal more about 55 Cancri e in the coming weeks

We have just a few weeks to wait to learn more about 55 Cancri e, thanks to the James Webb Space Telescope that will explore it after that time.

NASA tells us more about the hellish conditions present on 55 Cancri e:

With surface temperatures far above the melting point of typical rock-forming minerals, the day side of the planet is thought to be covered in oceans of lava,

Imagine if Earth were much, much closer to the Sun. So close that an entire year lasts only a few hours. So close that gravity has locked one hemisphere in permanent searing daylight and the other in endless darkness. So close that the oceans boil away, rocks begin to melt, and the clouds rain lava.

NASA sent JWST into space last year on Christmas after many delays. The telescope needs some time to calibrate its powerful instruments. However, James Webb will reveal its first full-color photos in July.