Australian astronomers have discovered the closest potentially habitable planet found outside our solar system. The newly discovered planet has a mass more than four times the mass of Earth and is only a mere 14 light years away. This planet looks similar to Mars, just larger. One of three that the team detected around a small, relatively cool star, also known as a red dwarf star called Wolf 1061, the planet is a orbiting a star that is compared to our sun.
This planet is habitable because it is similar to Earth in many ways like the rocky features and the sun-like planet it revolves around. There were three planets found, but the outermost planet is too far away from the star, and the innermost planet is too close to the star to be habitable.
Small rocky planets, such as the discovered habitable planet, are common in our galaxy and many other galaxies, but most are thousands of light years away. The close proximity of the planets around Wolf 1061 means that there is a good chance that these planets may pass across the face of the star. If this happens, these planets could also harbor life. The three newly detected planets orbit the small, relatively cool and stable star about every 5, 18 and 67 days.
The close proximity of the planets around Wolf 1061 means there is a good chance these planets may pass across the face of the star. If they do, then it may be possible to study the atmospheres of these planets in future to see whether they would be conducive to life, which is significant because with this new discovery, research that scientists conduct can be expanded, possibly even as far as figuring out if there is more life than just us.
Works Cited
University of New South Wales. "Nearby star hosts closest alien planet in the 'habitable zone'."ScienceDaily.
ScienceDaily, 16 December 2015. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/12/151216115742.htm>.
This planet is habitable because it is similar to Earth in many ways like the rocky features and the sun-like planet it revolves around. There were three planets found, but the outermost planet is too far away from the star, and the innermost planet is too close to the star to be habitable.
Small rocky planets, such as the discovered habitable planet, are common in our galaxy and many other galaxies, but most are thousands of light years away. The close proximity of the planets around Wolf 1061 means that there is a good chance that these planets may pass across the face of the star. If this happens, these planets could also harbor life. The three newly detected planets orbit the small, relatively cool and stable star about every 5, 18 and 67 days.
The close proximity of the planets around Wolf 1061 means there is a good chance these planets may pass across the face of the star. If they do, then it may be possible to study the atmospheres of these planets in future to see whether they would be conducive to life, which is significant because with this new discovery, research that scientists conduct can be expanded, possibly even as far as figuring out if there is more life than just us.
Works Cited
University of New South Wales. "Nearby star hosts closest alien planet in the 'habitable zone'."ScienceDaily.
ScienceDaily, 16 December 2015. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/12/151216115742.htm>.
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