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12 Most Dangerous Planets in the Known Universe
The Big Bang created the vast and mysterious universe billions of years ago. With no center or edge, the universe consists of space, energy, time, matter, moons, stars, galaxies, and planets. Centuries ago, humans were shocked to discover the Earth isn’t the center of the universe, nor is it the only planet.
Astronomers and astronauts continue to search the universe and find new planets that are light-years away. Like a science fiction movie, the average person might be excited to explore these new planets, but as it turns out, many of these planets are inhabitable and dangerous to humans. It’s a risk even traveling by spaceship to these planets. Let’s travel deep into space to discover the most dangerous planets.
12 Most Dangerous Planets in the Known Universe
1. Proxima Centauri b
In the early 2000s, astronomers believed they discovered an Earth-like planet 4.2 million light years away. What they actually found was a dangerous planet that couldn’t sustain life. The exoplanet Proxima Centauri b sits in the habitable zone of the red dwarf star Proxima Centauri. Part of the Centaurus constellation, the planet is difficult to study for various reasons.
Proxima Centauri b is tidally locked, meaning the same side of the planet is always facing the host star. Therefore, one side of the planet is scorching hot while the other is freezing cold. The temperature in the middle ground is likely more tolerable. Additionally, the star Proxima Centauri gives off solar flares every two to three months. The force from the radiation probably destroyed the ozone layers of Proxima Centauri b, making it uninhabitable for life.
2. Jupiter
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Since prehistoric times, Jupiter has been appearing in the Earth’s sky. After the Moon and Venus, Jupiter is the third brightest object in the Earth’s night sky. It’s primarily a gas giant made up of helium and hydrogen. With 92 moons, Jupiter is the largest planet in the Solar System. The planet’s clouds contain ammonia crystals and ammonium hydrosulfide.
Evidence suggests possible thunderstorms, flashes of lightning, and water clouds on Jupiter. Furthermore, Jupiter is known for storms lasting 358 years. These storms cause the planet to glow, creating the Great Red Spot in the Earth’s sky. Astronomers first noticed the storm in 1831, but it’s possible the first sighting goes back to the 1660s.
Fun fact: The planet’s name comes from the Ancient Roman god of the divine.
3. OGLE-TR-56 b
A hot Jupiter is a type of gas giant exoplanet with a similar physical appearance to Jupiter. These exoplanets orbit closely to their host star. Hence the name hot Jupiter. One of those hot Jupiter extrasolar planets is OGLE-TR-56 b.
Five thousand light-years away, it sits in the constellation of Sagittarius. First discovered between 2002 and 2003, the atmosphere is not habitable for humans. The clouds consist of vaporized iron, dropping hot liquid iron onto the planet. This is something no human being could withstand, along with the insane heat and clouds of iron.
4. HD 189733 b
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Exoplanet HD 189733 b is easily recognizable with its Earth-like blue color. First discovered by French astronomers in 2005, it sits in the Vulpecula constellation orbiting the star HD 189733. It takes the exoplanet 2.2 days to orbit the host planet. It’s 64.5 million light-years away from the Solar System and looks remarkably like Earth. But don’t let the Earth-like appearance fool you.
The planet is not habitable to humans or alien life forces. The blue color comes from silicate-rich clouds, creating rains of molten glass. The winds are also seven times faster than the speed of sound, making them extremely deadly. The intense speed of the wind causes the rain to fall sideways instead of straight down, adding to the dangers this planet creates.
5. OGLE-2005-BLG-390L b
In the middle of the Milky Way is the rogue planet OGLE-2005-BLG-390L b. Initially, astronomers believed they had discovered an Earth-like planet. They soon realized the super-Earth exoplanet had extremely low temperatures making it impossible for human life to exist. Any attempt to breathe without a space suit will cause the lungs to explode, resulting in immediate death.
In fact, the planet is so cold that astronomers nicknamed it Hoth after the ice planet of the same name from the beloved Star Wars franchise. With no sunlight, some areas of the exoplanet are as cold as the Antarctic, making it unsafe for human life.
6. Venus
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In broad daylight, the planet Venus is easily visible in the Earth’s sky. It’s the second planet from the Sun and despite sitting in the same Solar System as Earth, Venus is a dangerous planet that couldn’t sustain life. Also known as Earth’s twin, Venus is the third brightest object in the Earth’s sky. Throughout Venus, large volcanoes release carbon dioxide and intense heat. Sulfur dioxide-rich clouds fill the sky dropping lethal sulfuric acid, but the temperature is so hot the water evaporates before it hits the surface.
Venus is scorching hot all year long, even in the winter. The snowfall consists of galena and bismuthinite metals while the clouds trap the carbon dioxide on Venus, turning it into a planet of poison. The clouds also prevent sunlight from reaching Venus. With intense heat and poisonous gases, Venus is one of the deadliest planets in the Solar System. The planet’s name comes from the Roman goddess of love and beauty, Venus.
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7. TrES-2 b
The darkest planet in the vast universe, TrES-2 b is 750 light-years away in the constellation of Draco. The black exoplanet orbits the Sun-like star GSC 03549-02811. The planet is so dark that black coal would appear lighter than the actual color of the planet.
The dark appearance is due to the exoplanet absorbing 99% of the light. The dark appearance is very misleading, with the planet one of the hottest in the universe. It gets so hot that it gives off a red glow. With the atmosphere made mostly of sodium and potassium, humans would never be able to survive on TES-2b.
8. CoRoT-7 b
In the constellation of Monoceros sits the exoplanet CoRoT-7 b. The terrestrial planet orbits its host star, CoRoT-7, in 20 hours. First discovered in 2009 during the French CoRoT mission, the planet is 489 light years from Earth. It has a rocky surface like Earth, but the atmosphere is deadly. Additionally, temperatures are sweltering due to the close distance of the host star. The Earth’s Sun is 60 times further away than CoRoT-7b is from its host star, yet CoRoT-7b is much hotter.
It’s also tidally locked, meaning the same side is facing CoRoT-7 at all times. If that wasn’t enough, the atmosphere consists of minerals that form rock clouds. These deadly clouds drop pebbles and rocks onto the planet instead of rain, making CoRoT-7b too dangerous for human life because of the intense heat and rock clouds.
9. KELT-9 b
The exoplanet KELT-9 b is 670 light years away from Earth. It takes roughly 1.5 days for the planet to orbit its host star, which is three times the size of the Sun. Considered a hot Jupiter, the tidally locked planet’s hot hydrogen-rich atmosphere escapes into space to the host star.
As the star and exoplanet get closer, the temperature increases dramatically. Evidence suggests the host star could overtake the exoplanet’s atmosphere in roughly 200 years. As the hottest planet in the universe, the atmosphere and external conditions make KELT-9 b highly dangerous.
10. WASP-121 b
850 light-years away in the Puppis constellation sits the unique exoplanet WASP-121 b. The temperature on the planet is so hot that an object would melt into a gas, with the atmosphere consisting of magnesium and iron gases.
The real danger comes from the close distance to the planet’s host star, with the gravitational pull from the host star giving WASP-121 b a football-shaped appearance. The host star drives temperatures up, creating a deadly planet in space.
11. Upsilon Andromedae b
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First discovered in 1996, Upsilon Andromeda b is one of the first hot Jupiters. Also known as Saffar, it’s 44 light years away from the Sun in the Andromeda constellation. Like many planets on this list, it’s tidally locked, with one side facing the parent star. Orbiting around Upsilon Andromeda, it’s one of the deadliest planets due to the extreme heat.
Astronomers discovered something unique about the extrasolar planet. Unlike other tidally locked planets, the hotter side is facing away from the host star. The belief is that the strong winds carry the heat from the parent star to the other side of the planet while simultaneously blowing the cool air to the side facing the host star.
12. Neptune
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Neptune is a dangerous gas giant deep in the Solar System named after the Roman god of the sea. First discovered in 1846, it was the first planet that used mathematics to determine its location. With ice and rock covering Neptune, the ice giant’s blue appearance is due to a combination of methane and the Rayleigh scattering effect of the light.
In addition to methane, the planet has an abundance of hydrogen, helium, hydrocarbons, ammonia, and possibly nitrogen. Astronomers also noticed constant changes in Neptune’s weather pattern, with intense storms in the southern hemisphere, first dubbed the Great Dark Spot, often lasting several years before dissipating.
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