An Earth- planet in the habitable zone? New NASA discovery is one special world.

[Admin]

When scientists search for alien planets, they get a special thrill when they find one that seems to reflect our own world back to us.

An Earth- planet in the habitable zone? New NASA discovery is one special world. : Read more

 

[rod]

When scientists search for alien planets, they get a special thrill when they find one that seems to reflect our own world back to us.

An Earth- planet in the habitable zone? New NASA discovery is one special world. : Read more

TOI 700 d will be in the news cycle for sometime I think. We have recent reports on this exoplanet too https://www.space.com/nasa-tess-first-earth-size-habitable-exoplanet-toi-700d.html

It is a super-earth, some 2.26 earth masses and the host star provides about 86% of our Sun's solar energy window when compared. In the Precambrian, this amount of solar energy put the Earth in snow-ball Earth. TOI 700 d, diameter and mass indicate a mean density near 7.37 g cm^-3, denser than Earth's mean density.

 

[Speed]

"It's actually farther into the habitable zone than Earth; Earth itself is barely habitable,"
Really??? You're going to go with that?
Then they show a diagram of the TOI system and 700d is just on the inside of the habitable zone.
Unreal.

 

[rod]

I use this site as my canonical reference list for exoplanets that are confirmed, The Extrasolar Planets Encyclopaedia

4168 are listed as confirmed with distance from 4 light years to 35882 light years. There is a smaller population considered within the host star's habitable zone. Perhaps when it comes to reporting on exoplanets, there are those with zeal to show a new, habitable exoplanet and with life on it too - because of the law of abiogenesis. Failure to establish this in science could be seen as a failure of the scientific explanation for the origin of life on Earth and the Earth being created via cosmic collisions and accidents.

 

[Lagrange]

Each newly discovered planet is exciting, of course, however, what disappoints me is that these so-called 'earth-like' planets always seem to orbit red dwarfs, notoriously unstable and dangerous, or worse. Where are all the relatively stable yellow dwarf stars like our own sun with planets in the habitable zone? Truly 'earth-like' planets seem to elude searchers with depressing regularity, and the chances of finding life elsewhere just as elusive.

 

[rod]

Each newly discovered planet is exciting, of course, however, what disappoints me is that these so-called 'earth-like' planets always seem to orbit red dwarfs, notoriously unstable and dangerous, or worse. Where are all the relatively stable yellow dwarf stars like our own sun with planets in the habitable zone? Truly 'earth-like' planets seem to elude searchers with depressing regularity, and the chances of finding life elsewhere just as elusive.

FYI, the list of 4168 exoplanets shows 573 are found orbiting spectral class G stars, so only 13.75% of the reported population. Some of those G type stars are slightly smaller than our Sun and some, slightly larger. The search for a habitable exoplanet seems focused now on class M and K stars - it appears.

The Extrasolar Planets Encyclopaedia

 

[rod]

FYI. Smaller stars like red dwarfs and K type stars tend to be fast rotators too, thus more energetic and flaring. The Sun today spins near 2 km/s at the equator but some of these host stars for habitable zone claims - how fast are they spinning? This could be the case for various class G stars in the exoplanet list too. Rod has not seen a good graph here for the habitable zone exoplanets - confirmed and host star spin rates compared to our Sun.

 

[William Pennat]

FYI. Smaller stars like red dwarfs and K type stars tend to be fast rotators too, thus more energetic and flaring. The Sun today spins near 2 km/s at the equator but some of these host stars for habitable zone claims - how fast are they spinning? This could be the case for various class G stars in the exoplanet list too. Rod has not seen a good graph here for the habitable zone exoplanets - confirmed and host star spin rates compared to our Sun.

I thought that too when I read the first story about this newly discovered planet. However, this story does not that this star is a "quiet" red dwarf, no flares so far. That leaves only tidal locking as big negative. Tidal locking is probably less unfavorable to life than flares though. I can imagine there being "temperate zones" on a tidally locked planet. I just wonder if it's ever going to be possible to detect life on any other planet without actually going there in person. Relatively easy in the case of Mars and even some of the giant planet moons in our solar system. Planets around other stars? Not so much....

 

[Speed]

Each newly discovered planet is exciting, of course, however, what disappoints me is that these so-called 'earth-like' planets always seem to orbit red dwarfs, notoriously unstable and dangerous, or worse. Where are all the relatively stable yellow dwarf stars like our own sun with planets in the habitable zone? Truly 'earth-like' planets seem to elude searchers with depressing regularity, and the chances of finding life elsewhere just as elusive.

You nailed it. Red dwarfs are unstable and blast UV into space on a regular basis. Plus, most planets around red dwarfs are tidally locked, another kick in the pants for life.