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Entering orbit…
Habitability
26/ 100
Extremely Harsh

HD 159868 c

Gas GiantExtremely Harsh182 light years awayFound 2012

HD 159868 c, from the NASA Exoplanet Archive (found 2012). Measured: 244 Earth masses, 1.03 AU, a 5534 K G-type star. Composition inferred from a mass of 244 Earths, which is giant territory whatever its 0.09x density suggests, with an assumed 24-hour day — rotation cannot be measured for exoplanets.

Host star

HD 159868

Type
G-type (Yellow (Sun-like))
Spectral type
G5 V
Temperature
5,534 K
Radius
2.13 ☉
Mass
1.19 ☉
Known planets
2, including this one
Luminosity
3.60 ☉

Published by the NASA Exoplanet Archive. This world’s temperature and habitability score are computed from this star’s measured luminosity, not from a stand-in for its class.

Gas Giant

Magnetic FieldExtreme Activity
Why is this a Gas Giant?Your planet has 86.0% hydrogen and helium, combined with a mass of 244.0x Earth, which exceeds the gas giant threshold.
Gas giants form when massive cores capture enormous atmospheres of light gases. They typically form beyond the 'frost line' where volatiles can condense.
Classification Criteria:
✓ Hydrogen + Helium: 86.0% (>60% required)✓ Mass: 244.0x Earth (>10x required)
Further reading
Exoplanets: Diamond Worlds, Super Earths, Pulsar PlanetsMichael Summers & James TrefilThe strange end of the catalogue — carbon worlds, molten rock, planets orbiting dead stars.The Little Book of ExoplanetsJoshua WinnHow these worlds are found, and what a measurement can honestly tell us.Envisioning ExoplanetsMichael CarrollWhat these worlds might look like from the ground, painted from the same measurements this page renders.Imagined LifeJames Trefil & Michael SummersWhat could live on a world like this one: ice shells, supergravity, tidally locked twilight.
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Habitability ScoreExtremely Harsh
26
Contributing Factors
temperature40
Extreme temperature - very difficult for life
atmosphere30
Hydrogen-rich atmosphere typical of gas giants
water15
No solid surface — any water is locked in a supercritical mantle and hot ice, not oceans
magnetic Field100
Magnetic field provides radiation protection
geology40
Extreme volcanic activity may be hazardous
Organic Chemistry80
Core organic elements (CHNO) present
rotation100
Optimal rotation period - balanced day/night cycle, moderate weather, and good heat distribution

Physical Properties

Mass
244.00x Earth (1.46e+27 kg)
Radius
6.25x Earth (39,811 km)
This planet: 6.25× Earth radiusEarth: 1× (baseline)
Surface Gravity
6.25x Earth (61.3 m/s²)
Surface Temperature
378 K (105 °C / 221 °F)
Rotation Period
24.0 hours/day
This planet: 24 h/dayEarth: 24 h/day

Orbital Environment

Star Type
G-type (Yellow (Sun-like))
Distance from Star
1.03 AU (154 million km)
Orbital Period
1.05 years

Atmosphere

Hydrogen and helium dominated with trace methane and ammonia

Elemental Composition

H - Hydrogen
53.8%
He - Helium
32.3%
O - Oxygen
5.4%

Surface Characteristics

No solid surface - thick gaseous envelope with possible rocky core deep within
The TerraForge exoplanet catalog: 5,572 real exoplanets run through the simulation, with a search field and rendered worlds grouped by type

New: The Exoplanet Catalog 🔭

Every confirmed planet NASA has measured well enough to build — 5,572 of them — is now in here, and none of them arrived with a label. Their real mass, radius, orbit and star go through the same simulation that runs everything you make, and it decides what each one is: gas giant, lava world, ocean, ice. Sixteen come out Earth-like. Find TRAPPIST-1e, stand on its surface, and see what a red dwarf's light actually looks like from the ground.

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