24 August international team of astronomers has officially announced the opening of exoplanets (planets outside our solar system) orbiting the nearest star – Proxima Centauri. Although in recent decades the astronomers had discovered more than 200 extrasolar planets similar to Earth, Proxima b planet gives hope that extraterrestrial life can finally be found. Will the new planet challenge prevailing scientific views, or all slightly exaggerated, says Alexander Rodin, director Fiztech School of Aerospace Technology, Head of the Laboratory of Applied Infrared spektrokopii MIPT.
What is known about the new planet
Modern astronomical methods make it possible to find out only the most general characteristics of the planet – the mass, distance to Star and the approximate temperature of the orbit period of the circular orbit of her or elongated, elliptical, a rough estimate of the size. You can also try to find out the composition, but it will be very approximate figures. About Proxima b planet known that the mass 1.3 times the Earth, and the radius of its orbit is 7 million kilometers (more than twenty times less than the distance from Earth to the Sun). The period of its revolution around Proxima Centauri is 11 Earth days. It was also found that the planet is in a zone where liquid water may exist.
What is important is the opening
Proxima Centauri – is the closest star to the Sun. And if the star has a planet similar to Earth, and thus potentially habitable – it is loud news. Despite the fact that in recent years, many Earth-like exoplanets have been found, of particular interest is the fact that it is located at the closest star – its distance from Earth is only 4.25 light-years, is still no closer than was found no planet . In addition, Proxima Centauri belongs to the class of red dwarfs, these stars in the galaxy very much. So, probably, and planets like our own, too, very much. This is the main value of the discovery.
Is there life on Proxima b
We know the conditions under which no life can not be: if the temperature is 50 degrees above or below the temperature of our earth, unless the liquid water in the atmosphere or toxic substances are corrosive. But even in the presence of water and the atmosphere can be no confidence in the existence of life on the planet. And vice versa. dozens of spacecraft have been sent to Mars, but so far there is no evidence that there is no life there. To reach the same to the new planet, even the most to us close, at this stage of development can not art – it is almost a million times farther away from Earth than Venus or Mars
What we still can learn <. / strong>
Further studies of new planets can be extremely valuable in terms of statistics. We did not know how our own planet, although very much depend on it. Earth’s temperature changes by one degree per century – and starts to panic: thought up the Kyoto protocol imposes restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions. Meanwhile, the sun and other stars, which can be thousands watching the naked eye, much more is known. By the middle of the XX century, thanks to the huge observation statistics, it was known as the stars are born, live and die. At the same time, about the planets of the solar system was very little is known, even though there are only eight. Now, thanks to the spectrometer, high-resolution telescopes, several thousand new planets have been discovered. The appearance of this observational statistics will create a large array of data and for the foreseeable future and learn more about the Earth, if we see a planet similar in different stages of evolution. To draw an analogy with the Sun – is now accurately known his future: it will become a red giant, and then reset the shell will dwarf and then gradually damped. It is expected that by this time the people on Earth will be gone. That’s why it’s time to take on this multidimensional problem.
Are Russian scientists to make such discoveries
In Russia there are no suitable ground-based telescopes and the corresponding spectral apparatus, and the only place in the North Caucasus, suitable for astrophysical measurements, not suitable for the observation of extrasolar planets. Such expensive instruments being built for decades. We also do not have their own national orbital observatory. On the decline of the Soviet government on the way were three major projects – “Radioastron” (brilliantly realized in our days), “Spektr-RG” and “Spektr-UV” (both are in the implementation stage). But at the time of the problems exoplanet did not exist. And when in the 90s boom discoveries of extrasolar planets, our country, unfortunately, has not the best times. Therefore, the Observatory, this recently the spent mission of NASA “Kepler”, in the Russian Federal Space Program does not appear.
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