Belgian scientists ran a simulation that will try to help in the search for a twin to Earth even if it is not an identical twin and discovered that the ability of rocky planets facing one side to their sun to support life depends on their "air conditioning system"
The search for planets with the potential to support life is often interpreted as a search for a twin to Earth, but some planets outside our solar system are better candidates for life even if they are not in the same narrow range of size and distance from the Sun as those of Earth and even if they are facing only one side to their sun (gravitational locking).
Researchers from KU Leuven in Belgium ran 165 climate simulations for planets that regularly point one side toward their sun. They found that two out of three climate simulations they ran allowed life.
Most of the planets that have been discovered so far orbit our own cold suns, also known as "red dwarfs". In this environment only planets close to their sun can be hot enough to keep water in a liquid state, moreover, their proximity to the sun also allows them to have the potential for life and they are easier to locate and observe for research purposes.
Most of the planets that orbit close to their suns face the main star the same way all the time. As a result, they have one side of eternal day and the other side eternal winter. Despite this, the climate of these stars is not necessarily very hot on one side and freezing on the other, thanks to an efficient "air conditioning system" that keeps the surface temperatures in the habitable zone.
Dr. Ludmila Carone (Carone), Prof. Roni Capens and Prof. Lee Dechin from KU Lauven studied the possible climate conditions of these planets in detail. "On the basis of three-dimensional models, we examined planets with different periods and sizes, Karon explains. "We discovered that these rocky planets can have three possible climates, two of which have the potential for life."
For planets whose rotation period around their axis is less than 12 days, a jet stream traveling east is created in the upper layer of the atmosphere along the equator (a phenomenon known as superrotation).
The wind jets interfere with the movement of the atmosphere on the planet and cause the day side of the planet to become too hot to support life. A second possible wind system is characterized by two jets moving west in the high latitudes. The third option combines the first and second. In the second and third options, the wind does not interfere with the "natural air conditioning system" so that the planets remain with the potential for life.
The findings should be used by the designers of future space telescopes, one of whose goals will be to search for life outside the solar system. Leuven researchers are participating in the preparations for the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope in 2018 - the replacement of the Hubble, as well as in the design of a dedicated spacecraft for detecting planets called PLATO which is expected to be launched in 2024.
Not only will this study be able to identify the most promising candidates for further study, it will also prevent the premature rejection of planets with the potential for life even if they are not similar to Earth.
9 תגובות
Thanks for the non-lethal and insightful answers.
Avi Cohen
There is logic in your words. In searching for life at great distances, it makes more sense to look for life as we know it. Otherwise, we will not be able to distinguish this life from physical phenomena.
In nearby planets the situation is different. It is clear to us that there are no advanced life forms, in the form we know. On the other hand, accessibility allows us to look for forms of life that are completely different from what we are familiar with.
Nissim and Yehuda,
As Nissim said, scientists today speculate that the existence of oxygen in the Earth is the result of organisms that emitted oxygen in their biological processes. From this it can be understood that oxygen is not necessarily necessary for life, and before the atmosphere of Earth was full of oxygen, there were organisms here that existed without oxygen, and it is also possible that they became extinct after the atmosphere was "poisoned with oxygen" for them.
Even today there are organisms that live without oxygen, and if I were a biologist, I would look for those organisms because it is possible that some of them are the first forms of life on earth.
The problem is that we don't know much about such life forms, and it is better for us to invest our precious budgets in searching for the forms we know best, which are life forms similar to ours (organic).
Therefore, it is likely that the first distant planet we discover with life will have life forms similar to ours to some extent, not because all life in the universe is similar to ours (perhaps not even the majority), but because these are the forms we know and are able to locate.
If we look at the studies of Extremophiles (organisms that are able to live in environments that are deadly to us), we find that life is more resilient than previously thought.
Therefore, in my opinion, all this points in the direction of a universe full of diverse life forms, in different habitats (unless there is some factor that limits life that we do not know so far).
Yehuda Sabradimish
The distance of the sun from the planet is important
Because if the planet is too close to the sun
The water will be in a gaseous state - if at all
Will.
Regarding moons of major planets
You're probably right, it's just a shame that the science
Can't (currently) locate such moons
In other solar systems and certainly
which he has no way of knowing details about.
Joseph
James Lovelock long ago expressed the idea that life could be discovered on a distant planet by examining its atmosphere. For example, it is thought that the oxygen in our atmosphere is the result of algae emissions in the distant past. The idea that a planet that contains life reaches a different point of stability than if there was no life.
There is no point in this search because it will take hundreds of thousands of years to reach even the closest planet to us
An interesting question that I haven't seen many publications about (I haven't and maybe there is) is what determines the existence of an atmosphere and the prevention of its evaporation. One factor but not the only one is the mass. Another factor is the existence of gases emitted by the star. Another factor is temperature on the planet. The question is relevant a) because if, for example, an atmosphere is created on Mars one day, how do we know that it will not evaporate? b) The existence of an oxygen atmosphere increases the chance perhaps (I'm not an expert) of organic life like on Earth. The existence of an atmosphere at all serves as a blanket against extreme temperature changes, as well as a radiation shield. Another question is whether it is possible to know from scanning a light spectrum that a distant star has an atmosphere.
Another factor that can be considered in determining the chances of life on another planet is magnetism. Magnetism protects a star from radiation and an incessant bombardment of particles that are unhealthy for organic life. Again - I assume organic life because that's what I know. Maybe there is a different kind of life.
The position of the sun is not necessary for the existence of liquid water. If we take the moon Europa we will understand that being near a large planet is already enough for liquid water, and if we also take the case of the earth's chimneys found in the depths of the ocean there will always be liquid water there too and it doesn't matter where the sun is. Note that the heat emitted from the earth has been billions of years. In fact, any planet wherever it is may be under certain conditions a place for the existence of life!
Please respond gently
Yehuda