CoRoT-2b is the second extrasolar planet to be detected by the French-
led CoRoT mission. It orbits the star CoRoT-2, a 12th magnitude yellow
dwarf G-type main sequence star, located approximately 700 light-years
away in the constellation of Aquila. It is a bit cooler than the Sun, but
more active.
Its discovery was announced on 20 December 2007. After its discovery
via the transit method, its mass was confirmed via the radial velocity
method.
The planet is a large "hot Jupiter", about 1.43 times the radius of Jupiter
and approximately 3.3 times as massive. Its huge size is due to the in-
tense heating from its parent star, which causes the outer layers of its at-
mosphere to bloat. The extremely large radius of the planet indicates that
CoRoT-2b is very hot, estimated to be around 1500 K, even hotter than
would be expected given its location close to its parent star. This fact may
be a sign of tidal heating due to interactions with another planet. At
Jupiter-like distances its radius would roughly be the same as Jupiter.
CoRoT-2b orbits its star approximately once every 1.7 days, and orbits the
star in a prograde direction close to the star's equator.
