#Gasgiants, like #Jupiter or #Saturn in our solar system, are composed mostly of helium and/or hydrogen. Gas giants nearer to their stars are often called “hot Jupiters.” More variety is hidden within these broad categories. Hot Jupiters, for instance, were among the first exoplanet types found – gas giants like Jupiter, yes, but orbiting so close to their stars that their temperatures soar into the thousands of degrees (Fahrenheit or Celsius). These large planets make such tight orbits that they cause a pronounced “wobble” in their stars, tugging their stellar hosts this way and that, and causing a measurable shift in the spectrum of light from the stars. That made hot Jupiters easier to detect in the early days of planet hunting using the radial velocity method.

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