The planet just discovered, called “L 98-59 F”, managed to escape previous observations because it does not pass between the earth and its star when the orbit, known as “transit”. The planets passing through their guest stars are easier to identify, because the mini-ecclits they create when passing through the face of their star can be seen by telescopes.
THE research Announcement of the discovery of the planet, which is awaiting publication in The astronomical diary—Alocate the planet through subtle variations in the movement of its host star. Planets orbiting the stars exert a gravitational shot on their guest as they orbit, slightly moving the position of their star. These movements can reveal the presence of planets even when they cannot be seen.
The revealing movements of L 98-59 were collected by two tools specially designed for hunting the planet: the upper part Spectrograph of Arpeinstalled on the European telescope of the southern observatory (ESO) and on Espresso Rocky Esoplanet SpectrographWhich is part of the large telescope (VLT) at the paranal ESO in Chile Observatory.
Comparison of the positions of the five exoplanets of L 98-59 with the first three planets of our Solar System, based on the amount of solar energy they receive. The fifth Exoplanet receives, proportionally, the same energy of the earth.For kind concession of O. Statengeon/European Southern Observatory
L 98-59 F stands out from the other planets in its sun system because it receives a similar amount of solar energy to the earth. According to Montreal researchers, if it has a suitable atmosphere, it could be a temperate planet capable of holding liquid water on its surface.
In addition to allowing the presence of liquid water, the habitable area of a solar system is the region in which, potentially, planetary conditions could allow the development of life. Each star has its own habitable area, determined by its type and the amount of energy it emits.
The star system L 98-59 is gradually attracting attention between astronomy enthusiasts. Any confirmed exoplanet is as intriguing as the rest and everyone is in the habitable band. The planet closest to the star is half of the mass of Venus but 85 percent of the size of the earth. The second is almost 2.5 times more massive than our planet. The third could be 30 % oceanic. Little is known about the fourth, except for the fact that it is also a “Super-Earth”—A term used to describe planets bigger than our but smaller than the ice giants of our sun system.
For now, there is no image of L 98-59 f. The next step will be to use the advanced James Webb space telescope technology to try to capture a direct image.
“These results confirm L 98-59 as one of the closest systems to explore the diversity of rocky planets and, finally, in search of signs of life”, he says to declaration issued by the University of Montreal.
There is only another known star system similar in the complexity and number of exoplanets: trappist-1, which is 39 light years from the earth. It is a nana ultracol star with at least seven rocky exoplanets, three of which are located in the habitable region.
This story originally appeared on Wired en español And it was translated by the Spaniard.