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Space oddities: The strangest planets we've found so far

Hindustan Times Thane

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October 12, 2025

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Are we ready to encounter alien life, asks Nikku Madhusudhan of the Institute of Astronomy at University of Cambridge

- Team HT Wknd anesha.george@hindustantimes.com

We've stumbled upon some strange things, amid our quest to know more and perhaps meet the neighbours.

There are planets that look a lot like Earth but are blue from silica, where whipping winds send a rain of glass flying sideways; others with a core of carbon compressed into diamond; still others with so little density, one planet has been nicknamed the cotton-candy orb.

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