Astronomers have detected barium around the ultra-hot gas giants WASP-76 b and WASP-121 b. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

The exoplanets WASP-76 b and WASP-121 b are already known to be peculiar places, but a new discovery has raised even more questions about the composition of these celestial bodies. Astronomers ...

Astronomers have found the heaviest element yet in the atmosphere of an exoplanet. That element – barium – shocked scientists when it appeared in the atmospheres around two distant planets, WASP-76 b ...

Scientists using the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) Very Large Telescope have found the heaviest element ever discovered within the atmosphere of an exoplanet — twice. Astronomers say their ...

Katharina M. Fromm relates how barium and its ores went from a magical, glowing species that attracted witches and alchemists to components in a variety of compounds that are key parts of modern life.