Potentially Habitable Exoplanet Discovered Near Earth
An international team of researchers has discovered one of the closest potentially habitable exoplanets to Earth, located just 40 light-years away. This discovery, made using the transit method, has identified the exoplanet Gliese 12 b, situated in the constellation Pisces. With a size comparable to Venus, Gliese 12 b orbits a red dwarf star, Gliese 12, every 12.8 days (Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias).
Observations and Technology
The discovery was made possible thanks to observations from NASA’s TESS satellite and instruments such as CARMENES and MuSCAT2. Gliese 12 b, detected via the transit method, has a diameter similar to that of Venus and an estimated temperature of 42 °C.
Details of the Star and Planet
Gliese 12 b orbits its host star, Gliese 12, every 12.8 days. The star is a cool red dwarf located nearly 40 light-years away in the constellation Pisces, with only 27% of the Sun’s size and 60% of its surface temperature. The planet receives 1.6 times more energy than Earth.
This is an exoplanet with intriguing conditions for habitability. Its surface temperature is estimated at 42 °C, though this could vary depending on the presence and composition of an atmosphere. Researchers have dubbed it an “exo-Venus,” as it receives a significant amount of energy from its star, similar to Venus.
The exoplanet Gliese 12 b represents an exceptional target for the study of planetary atmospheres. The host star, Gliese 12, shows no signs of extreme magnetic activity, which favors the preservation of an atmosphere on the planet. This makes Gliese 12 b an ideal candidate for future observations with the James Webb Space Telescope, which could reveal the chemical composition of its atmosphere through transit spectroscopy.
Significance of the Discovery and Spanish Participation
According to Masayuki Kuzuhara from the Tokyo Center for Astrobiology, Gliese 12 b is one of the best targets for studying atmospheric retention on Earth-like planets. Scientists from various institutions, including the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), participated in the research. The IAC team, led by Enric Pallé, has highlighted the importance of Gliese 12 b for better understanding atmospheric evolution and habitability in Earth-like exoplanets. The observations were carried out using advanced instruments such as the CARMENES spectrograph at the Calar Alto Observatory and the MuSCAT2 camera at the Carlos Sánchez Telescope at the Teide Observatory (Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias).
The discovery of Gliese 12 b not only expands our knowledge of potentially habitable exoplanets but also opens new avenues for investigating the conditions necessary for habitability in other planetary systems. This finding underscores the importance of international collaboration and the use of advanced technology in the search for Earth-like worlds beyond our solar system.
For more details, you can read the full statement on the website of the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) (Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias)
Fuente: Publicaciones Instituto Astrofísica de Canarias
Articles:
– M. Kuzuhara et al. “Gliese 12 b: A temperate Earth-sized planet at 12 pc ideal for atmospheric transmission spectroscopy”. ApJL 2024, 967, L21. DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/ad3642
– S. Dholakia et al. “Gliese 12 b, a temperate Earth-sized planet at 12 parsecs discovered with TESS and CHEOPS”. MNRAS 2024, Volume 531, Issue 1, Pages 1276–1293. DOI: 10.1093/mnras/stae1152