Mini-Neptunes may become super-Earths as the exoplanets lose their atmospheres
The puffy planets’ atmospheres are being stripped away thanks to radiation from their stars
![illustration of a mini-Neptune exoplanet](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/080522_lk_mini-neptunes_feat.jpg?fit=1030%2C580&ssl=1)
Starlight can erode the atmospheres of some mini-Neptune exoplanets (one illustrated), gradually turning them into super-Earths, rocky worlds a bit bigger than our own.
Adam Makarenko/Keck Observatory