Based on new research in new research, the rocky, Earth -sized planet, which is located in our Milky Way, can lead to an atmosphere in our Milky Way Galaxy, increasing the possibility that it can also have liquid water on its surface and can support life.
In two separate articles published on Monday, Astrophysical Journal Letters, astronomers, zero, developed a TrapPist-1 system consisting of seven rocky planets that orbate one star. Both studies have described the initial observations of NASA James Webb Space Telescope, which show that the planet, known as the Trappist-1e, may have a nitrogen-rich atmosphere such as land, but further research is needed to confirm the discovery.
Results are an important step in the constant search for and outside the solar system of extraterrestrial life.
This week, NASA announced that a rock sample on Mars may contain evidence of ancient germs’ life. The current Mars has a thin atmosphere consisting of carbon dioxide, nitrogen and argon gas, but the Red Planet is believed to have a thicker atmosphere billions of years ago when liquid water flowed on its surface.
Scientists have long decided that water is an essential ingredient in life.
The planet or moon must have an atmosphere for the water to be liquid and not immediately evaporated into space. As a result, the search for an exoplanet atmosphere is one of the most frustrating in the field of astronomy.
“After all, we want to reach the point where we find the planet, and Huzzah, we see a molecule that only life can be produced,” said Ryan Macdonald, an exoplanet astronomer in Scotland in Scotland and co-author of both studies. “But you have to have an atmosphere, so what we worked first is to find planets with atmosphere.”
The TRAPPIST-1 system, which is 40 light-years from the Earth, has been widely investigated since it was discovered in 2016, as several planets may have had conditions suitable for an extraterrestrial life.
Each light years are about 6 trillion miles.
TRAPPIST-1E is believed to be its own star in the theoretical “living area” that is not too close to be hell hot and not too far away to be icy cold, but simply to make liquid water on the surface.
For new studies, astronomers used NASA James Webb Space Telescope to observe four Trappist-1e “transit” or times when the planet passed in front of their star. The telescope did not directly see the atmosphere around the Trappist-1e, and rather measure how the exoplanet has absorbed the light to find out what, if anything, surrounds the planet.
Like the prism, the light can be divided into different color bands on the rainbow spectrum, and the way certain colors are blocked or filtered can be different signals of specific gas atoms or molecules.
For example, if a particular color is absorbed, it can offer high carbon dioxide concentration. Other color changes may hint in different chemical properties including the presence of oxygen, oxygenIs it methane or nitrogen.
“If we do not see color options, then the planet is probably just a naked rock,” Macdonald said. “Bald rock does not care if it shines on it with red light or blue light. It will just block them all the same way.”
In four transit, researchers found no evidence of a hydrogen-rich atmosphere around the Trappist-1e. Nor did they see any signs that carbon dioxide dominates its potential atmosphere. However, webb’s observations indicate that its atmosphere is rich in nitrogen.
“This is an exciting step and it really helps to narrow the capabilities of the atmosphere, which is perhaps more like the Earth,” said Caroline Piaulat-Ghorayeb, a collaborator at the University of Chicago, which was not related to new research.
There is a high concentration of nitrogen gas in the atmosphere of the Earth itself. Titan, one of the moon around Saturn, also has an atmosphere that is usually nitrogen. NASA said Titan is likely to have a huge underground ocean that can make it a living, but the environment filled with the lunar methane will mean that any existing life will be very different from life on Earth.
Piaulat-Ghorayeb was separately the main study of the last month published by the Astrophysical Journal, which focused on the Planetary System: Trapist-1D, the third star planet, which is also flying in the living area. There was no evidence of molecules in the Earth’s atmosphere such as water, carbon dioxide or methane.
Studying these celestial bodies arises with great challenges.
The TRAPPIST-1 star is a small but particularly active, which creates a lot of background noise researchers to find out. E.g.
To confirm the presence of the atmosphere, Macdonald and his colleagues are planning to study Trappist-1e in 15 more transit years.
It also takes place for three other planets that are further in the system, Trappist-1F, Trapist-1G and Trappist-H.
The study should help researchers closer to the answer to several endurance questions about exoplants and search for life.
“We have not yet found an atmosphere on any rocky planet outside the solar system, so the atmospheres are studying and looking for a very exciting atmospheric on planets,” said Piaulat-Ghorayeb. “But a lot has to be done.
This article was originally published in nbcnews.com