Only 31 light years away astronomers have discovered a habitable world, thanks to the NASA telescope
Only 31 light years away astronomers have discovered a habitable world, thanks to the NASA telescope
NASA's Exoplanet transit study satellite, or TESS, a super-powerful orbiting telescope that explores the world in search of alien worlds, discovered a new planet circling around a nearby star in the constellation Hydra. When astronomers checked the star to confirm, they discovered two more worlds orbiting it. One of those planets, called GJ 357 d, could withstand liquid water if it turns out that it has a thick atmosphere and is made of rock. It is among the 45 closest exoplanets confirmed to date, out of a total of 4,025 planets counted so far outside our solar system. This planetary system is the closest third identified using the "transit" method, in which telescopes observe small falls in the brightness of a star that could be caused by a planet passing in front of it.
The promising planet is in the "habitable zone" of its star, the range of distances in which a rocky world could have the right surface temperature for liquid water to exist. GJ 357 d is within the outer edge of the habitable zone of its star, where it receives approximately the same amount of star energy from its star as Mars of the Sun. If the planet has a dense atmosphere, which will require future studies to determine it, It could trap enough heat to heat the planet and allow liquid water on its surface. If the planet has no atmosphere, its surface would be approximately -64 degrees Fahrenheit, well below the freezing point of water. The mass of GJ 357 d is at least 6.1 times that of Earth, and the planet orbits its small star every 55.7 days. However, scientists cannot say much about it without further studies.