Scientists: Water possible on three planets
Water is possible on planets orbiting a red dwarf sun.
The planets have sizes and temperatures similar to those of Venus and Earth, and the existence of water is “theoretically possible,” according to a news release on the website of the University of Liège in Belgium. Research on the planets was led by Michaël Gillon, the university’s astronomer.
The planets orbit an ultracool dwarf star that is cooler and redder than our sun, not much larger than Jupiter and in the constellation Aquarius.
The planets are much closer to their star than Earth is to the sun. Two have orbital periods of about 1.5 days and 2.4 days, a NASA news release said. The orbital period for the third planet is not so well determined and could range from 4.5 to 73 days. But because the star is faint, scientists believe that regions of the planet may be habitable.
A planet is in the habitable zone of a solar system if it is at a distance from its sun that enables it to support life and surface temperatures allow liquid water to exist.
The Hubble Space Telescope can characterize the atmospheres of the planets by observing them as they pass in front of the parent star, according to NASA.Two of the planets will transit the star on May 4. Astronomers hope to make measurements of the atmospheres and look for evidence of water vapor.
Related:
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