(ORDO NEWS) — On August 24, 2016, astronomers at the European Southern Observatory discovered the Earth-like exoplanet Proxima Centauri b orbiting the red dwarf Proxima Centauri.
Proxima Centauri b is the closest known exoplanet to Earth, only 4.2 light-years away. This rocky world will be one of the first targets of NASA‘s James Webb Space Telescope , which was launched on December 25, 2021.
Proxima Centauri b is in the habitable zone of its star. This suggests that, most likely, the conditions on the surface of the exoplanet are close to those on Earth and ensure the existence of water in the liquid phase.
What do Proxima Centauri b and Earth have in common?
- The mass of Proxima Centauri b is 17-27% more than the mass of the Earth;
- If Proxima Centauri b has a density equal to the earth, then its radius will be 10% greater than the radius of the Earth;
- Proxima Centauri b has an equilibrium temperature of -39 degrees Celsius. The analogous indicator on Earth is -18.15 degrees Celsius, but the greenhouse effect provides an average temperature of 15 degrees. If the atmosphere of Proxima Centauri b provides an Earth-like greenhouse effect, then the average surface temperature will be 7-8 degrees Celsius.
Significant differences
- Proxima Centauri b orbits the star at a distance of about 0.05 AU. (7,500,000 kilometers), which is about 19.6 times less than the distance between the Earth and the Sun. The period of revolution of Proxima Centauri b around its star is 11.2 Earth days;
- Proxima Centauri is an M-type red dwarf that is a flare star. This means that it is periodically subjected to a sharp increase in brightness and high-energy radiation due to magnetic activity, which can cause large solar storms. It turns out that sometimes Proxima Centauri b receives an enormous amount of radiation. However, if the exoplanet has a powerful magnetosphere and a dense atmosphere, then hypothetical life would be relatively safe.
According to the Catalog of Habitable Exoplanets, Proxima Centauri b is one of the most promising worlds discovered so far. The probability of habitability of Proxima Centauri b is 87%.
—
Online:
Contact us: [email protected]
Our Standards, Terms of Use: Standard Terms And Conditions.