Astronomers have discovered a new planet, presumably suitable for life. It is located at a distance of just 4.2 light years from Earth. But getting there in the foreseeable future, people still can not.
Photo: ZUMA / TASS
The planet, which could theoretically become a new home for humanity revolves around Proxima Centauri. This red dwarf is in the star system Alpha Centauri, the nearest to the sun. A team led by Guillaume Anglada-escudos from the Queen Mary University in London has given celestial body Proxima b name. Previously, the nearest suitable for the development of the life of the planet was considered Wolf 1061c in the constellation Ophiuchus. The distance to it is 13.7 light-years.
“It’s not just the closest of the already discovered Earth-like planets, but probably closest to our planet outside the solar system from the already opened or to be opened. No star that is closer (than Proxima Centauri) to the solar system, planet, respectively (the star) is located closest to the solar system, “- said the head of the research team.
Proxima b refers to the earthly type. Its weight is 1.27 earth. Around the star the planet is completely wrapped for 11.2 days and it is 20 times closer than Earth is to the sun. The radius of the planet has not yet been measured. This will require additional research
The main thing that distinguishes this from other planet -. It is located in the habitable zone of the star. This means that at the conditions close to the surface of the earth, that is, provided the existence of water in the liquid state. So far, astronomers have very little information to make a more or less detailed description of his discovery. Thus, the authors of the study say that the water on the planet and if there is, then certainly not everywhere. As for the atmosphere, they expressed very vague: it is possible that it is there. Climate Proxima, probably differs significantly from the earth: in particular, in the world there is no change of seasons. In the case of the presence of air at the surface temperature may be 30-40 ° C.
However, “zemnopodobnost” Proxima b does not say that her life can be. The planet is very close to the star. Though Proxima Centauri is much cooler than the Sun, but because the habitability of the ring where she have the same, small distance to the light provides strong radiation and UV exposure. It is about 400 times greater than the solar radiation on the earth’s surface. Are the living organisms exist in such circumstances – is not known. In addition, Proxima b constantly turned to its sun that one party (the Moon to the Earth). This means that on its reverse side reigns eternal night, which means that for the habitat it is not necessary.
Open Planet London scientists succeeded by measuring the velocity of stars in space. Rotating around the planet approaching Earth, the star accelerates relative to astronomers, and when moving away, slow down. Scientists consider it expedient “to conduct additional studies of a celestial body with the help of high-resolution spectroscopy and direct observation in the coming decades, as well as through the (unmanned) expeditions in the coming century”. Such studies can provide an answer to the question of the presence on Proxima b “little green men”
fly to the new planet and your own eyes to look at what is happening there, people can not for a long time:. Is that, to Unfortunately, there are no technologies that within one human life to overcome a distance of several light years. Despite the fact that space standards Sun and Alpha Centauri – the nearest neighbors, the way for man of 4.2 light-years – very not a short. This is 266 thousand. Times greater than that between the Earth and the sun. At the current level of development of science and technology to cover this distance will leave tens of thousands of years.
However, progress does not stand still. Microscopic spacecraft can head to the Alpha Centauri (and therefore learn and Proxima b) in the coming decades. This spring, about such plans said the British physicist Stephen Hawking and the Russian billionaire Yuri Milner. It is assumed that the apparatus weighing one gram will disperse with laser Earth. So far, this technology does not exist, but it is believed that the problem can be solved in 20 years. For the realization of Breakthrough Starshot program allocated $ 100 million. As necessary, this amount will grow. When scientists figure out how to disperse the laser microsatellites, they will be able to reach Alpha Centauri in 24 years.
Not all astronomers share the enthusiasm of the British regarding potentially habitable exoplanet. “What about the similarities with the Earth and, especially more livable – it’s too much, of course, – told reporters the head of the photometry laboratory and infrared radiometry department of physics of planets and small bodies of the solar system Space Research Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences, Professor Leonid Ksanfomaliti -. While you can definitely saying only that such a planet is. it is, indeed, the closest to us exoplanet. But now similar systems, although far away, have found more than two thousand. and every time, when they find another, the media certainly report that there planet similar to Earth, and it is possible that there are little green men “.
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