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Astronomers discover 7 Earth-sized planets orbiting nearby star


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http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/22/world/new-exoplanets-discovery-nasa/index.html?sr=fbCNN022217new-exoplanets-discovery-nasa0622PMStoryLink&linkId=34774658

 

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CNN- Astronomers have found at least seven Earth-sized planets orbiting the same star 40 light-years away, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal Nature. The findings were also announced at a news conference at NASA Headquarters in Washington. 

This discovery outside of our solar system is rare because the planets have the winning combination of being similar in size to Earth and being all temperate, meaning they could have water on their surfaces and potentially support life. 
"This is the first time that so many planets of this kind are found around the same star," said Michaël Gillon, lead study author and astronomer at the University of Liège in Belgium. 
The seven exoplanets were all found in tight formation around an ultracool dwarf star called TRAPPIST-1. Estimates of their mass also indicate that they are rocky planets, rather than being gaseous like Jupiter. Three planets are in the habitable zone of the star, known as TRAPPIST-1e, f and g, and may even have oceans on the surface. 
The TRAPPIST-1 star, an ultracool dwarf, has seven Earth-size planets orbiting it.
 
The TRAPPIST-1 star, an ultracool dwarf, has seven Earth-size planets orbiting it.
The researchers believe that TRAPPIST-1f in particular is the best candidate for supporting life. It's a bit cooler than Earth, but could be suitable with the right atmosphere and enough greenhouse gases.
If TRAPPIST-1 sounds familiar, that's because these researchers announced the discovery of three initial planets orbiting the same star in May. The newresearch increased that number to seven planets total. 
"I think we've made a crucial step towards finding if there is life out there," said Amaury Triaud, one of the study authors and an astronomer at the University of Cambridge. "I don't think any time before we had the right planets to discover and find out if there was (life). Here, if life managed to thrive and releases gases similar to what we have on Earth, we will know.
 
 

 

 

 
Life may begin and evolve differently on other planets, so finding the gases that indicate life is key, the researchers added.

What we know

The planets are so close to each other and the star that there are seven of them within a space five times smaller than the distance from Mercury to our sun. This proximity allows the researchers to study the planets in depth as well, gaining insight about planetary systems other than our own.
The seven planets of TRAPPIST-1 compared with Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars.
The seven planets of TRAPPIST-1 compared with Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars.
Starting closest to the star and moving out, the planets have respective orbits from one and a half to nearly 13 Earth days. The orbit of the farthest planet is still unknown.
Standing on the surface of one of the planets, you would receive 200 times less light than you get from the sun, but you would still receive just as much energy to keep you warm since the star is so close. It would also afford some picturesque views, as the other planets would appear in the sky as big as the moon (or even twice as big). 
On TRAPPIST-1f, the star would appear three times as big as the sun in our sky. And because of the red nature of the star, the light would be a salmon hue, the researchers speculate.
What the TRAPPIST-1 planetary system may look like.
 
What the TRAPPIST-1 planetary system may look like.
Based on preliminary climate modeling, the researchers believe that the three planets closest to the star may be too warm to support liquid water, while the outermost planet, TRAPPIST-1h, is probably too distant and cold to support water on the surface. But further observation is needed to know for sure. 

How the discovery was made

TRAPPIST-1 barely classifies as a star at half the temperature and a tenth the mass of the sun. It is red, dim and just a bit larger than Jupiter. But these tiny ultracool dwarf stars are common in our galaxy. 
They were largely overlooked until Gillon decided to study the space around one of these dwarves. 
The researchers used a telescope called TRAPPIST (TRAnsiting Planets and PlanetesImals Small Telescope) to observe its starlight and changes in brightness. The team saw shadows, like little eclipses, periodically interrupting the steady pattern of starlight. This is called transiting. The shadows indicated planets, and further observation confirmed them. 
In July, the team was able to determine that two of the closest planets to the stars had atmospheres that were more compact and comparable to those of Earth, Venus and Mars by observing starlight through the planets' atmosphere. 
By using a global network ground-based telescopes like TRAPPIST and space-based telescopes like Spitzer, the researchers continued looking toward the TRAPPIST system and were able to determine the orbital periods, distances from their star, radius and and masses of the planets.

What's next

Over the next decade, the researchers want to define the atmosphere of each planet, as well as to determine whether they truly do have liquid water on the surface and search for signs of life. 
Although 40 light-years away doesn't sound too far, it would take us millions of years to reach this star system. But from a research perspective, it's a close opportunity and the best target to search for life beyond our solar system. 
"If we learn something now, it can determine if we looked in the right place," Gillon said.
In 2018, the James Webb Space Telescope will launch and be positioned 1 million miles from Earth with an unprecedented view of the universe. It can observe large exoplanets and detect starlight filtered through their atmosphere. 
The researchers are also searching for similar star systems to conduct more atmospheric research. Four telescopes named SPECULOOS (Search for habitable Planets EClipsing ULtra-cOOl Stars) based in Chile will survey the southern sky for this purpose. 
This star system will probably outlive us because this type of star evolves so slowly. When our sun dies, TRAPPIST-1 will still be a young star and will live for another trillion years, Gillon said. After we are gone, if there is another part of the universe for life to carry on, it may be in the TRAPPIST-1 system.

 

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5 minutes ago, PunjabiCanucks said:

While this may be exciting, it may be too hot on the planets. Looking at the distance from the star to said planets they are very close! Temperatures may be unbearable depending on the star

The dwarf star's luminosity is only 0.0525% of the solar luminosity, hence why planets E, F, and G are in the habitable zone. Temperature isn't an issue even with the planets' proximity to the star.

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18 minutes ago, Brad Marchand said:

The dwarf star's luminosity is only 0.0525% of the solar luminosity, hence why planets E, F, and G are in the habitable zone. Temperature isn't an issue even with the planets' proximity to the star.

Nice :) sorry wasn't able to read the article in full. Been a busy day and I need a nap lol

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26 minutes ago, PunjabiCanucks said:

While this may be exciting, it may be too hot on the planets. Looking at the distance from the star to said planets they are very close! Temperatures may be unbearable depending on the star

It says in the article that the planets are cooler than earth which would be the case with a Dwarf star as it is smaller and less powerful than our Sun.

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Just now, Alflives said:

For a movie made of a classic novel, I actually thought "Starship Troopers" was pretty good.  

To what you were inferring it could be a case of careful what you wish for.

IE, what if there is intelligent life there but they haven't discovered us, but may be something like the Bugs and may have the ability to travel here so we should be careful not to poke the bear. 

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16 minutes ago, Heretic said:

To what you were inferring it could be a case of careful what you wish for.

IE, what if there is intelligent life there but they haven't discovered us, but may be something like the Bugs and may have the ability to travel here so we should be careful not to poke the bear. 

Yup.  I think human history shows us too much evidence of the weaker, being abused and (or) eliminated.  

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47 minutes ago, Heretic said:

To what you were inferring it could be a case of careful what you wish for.

IE, what if there is intelligent life there but they haven't discovered us, but may be something like the Bugs and may have the ability to travel here so we should be careful not to poke the bear. 

even if there were intelligent life there, the chances of it being around our tech level would be quite low. Almost all of human history our greatest technology has been a rock and a stick and statistically we would be more likely to come across a species in that tech range than our own. And if we did find a species at or above our tech level, its unlikely that any practical effort at warfare could occur without some serious industrialization that we would probably be able to detect the same way those planets were. It takes a lot to move enough people to invade another planet, to the degree that its not really practical. I suppose they could come here and throw asteroids at us but thats about it.

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