A group of European astronomers found in only 31 light year from the Earth another rare rocky exoplanet the size of the ground and conditions potentially suitable for life.

This is Wolf 1069b in the constellation Swan, which rotates around the red dwarf.

A little more than the Earth, but much colder

The exoplanet, which is the sixth nearest of the ever found, has a resemblance to our own planet.

Its mass is estimated only 1.3 times more than that of the Earth, its radius is 1.08 times more than that of the Earth (therefore it is a little larger), and its average temperature is from -7 to -23 degrees Celsius (therefore He is icy, but not overly).

To make one full revolution around its star, it takes almost 16 days (length of the year).

Potentially hospitable for life

The star Wolf 1069 radiates less radiation than the sun, and the exoplanet receives only 65% ​​of the radiation that the Earth receives from the sun.

The absence of any activity or intensive ultraviolet radiation on the parent star increases the chances that the exoplanet has retained most of its atmosphere, so it may be conditions favorable for the development of life.

Thus, Wolf 1069b will be another goal for future observations using more powerful telescopes (such as “Superbow Blue Telescope ELT”, under construction in Chile), along with exoplanets of other nearby stars, such as Proxima Centauri B and Trappist E.

Researchers, led by Diana Kosakovsky from the German Astronomical Institute named after Max Planck in Heidelberg, who published an appropriate publication in the Astronomy & Astrophysics magazine, made the opening with the Spanish Kalar-Alto telescope as part of the Carmens program.

To date, more than 5,000 exoplanets have been confirmed, but only 1.5% have a mass twice as much as the mass of the Earth. Even less – about ten – move in the so -called “inhabited” zone around their star, i.e. At a distance suitable for existence on their surface of liquid water.

Source: RES-IPE