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How many exoplanets are there?

There are 8 planets, 7 of which are the same size and mass as Earth

By Monu EllaPublished about a year ago 5 min read
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Planets

How many exoplanets are there? No one knows the answer to this, but it is certain that with the James Webb Space Telescope in full operation, it is only a matter of time before we begin to discover new exoplanets in the far reaches of space. Take, for example, a new star system recently discovered by humans, Trappist-1 (Trappist-1).

Trappist-1's star is an ultra-cool red dwarf with a surface temperature of only 2,500 degrees Celsius, which is low for a star, compared to our Sun's temperature of 5,800 degrees Celsius. Even in terms of size, it is only 9% of the mass of the Sun. This star system is about 40 light-years from Earth, so it is currently out of reach for humans, and of course, humans lack the technology to make it happen.

In the Trappist-1 system, scientists found three exoplanets orbiting the star, discovered by an observatory in Chile. In addition, the three planets orbiting the star have been named Trappist-1b, Trappist-1c, and Trappist-1d. After months of studying the system, astronomers have concluded that 1b and 1c have no gas atmosphere, which means they are rocky worlds, similar to Earth. In the future, once we achieve interstellar travel, these two planets could be candidates for planethood.

Crucially, scientists believe that they lack a suffocating hydrogen-helium envelope, which would increase the chances of habitability. Not only that, but scientists have found four more planets orbiting the star. This is interesting because our solar system has eight planets orbiting the Sun. However, apart from this similarity, these two star systems have no other similarities and look very different from each other.

This is because all seven of the planets orbiting Trappist 1 are the same size as Earth. In addition, some of them are located in the habitable zone. This region is close enough to the star and at the same time far enough away where the planets can easily sustain liquid water, which is important because liquid water happens to be a key ingredient for life. All of these planetary discoveries are credited to NASA's Spitzer telescope and other ground-based observatories.

While the Spitzer mission was still conducting scientific research, it conducted more than 1,000 hours of observations of the system. Even the Kepler telescope was involved in the study of the system. But, sadly, both of these missions are now retired. So now, the Muss Webb Space Telescope will continue its research and provide us with more valuable information. It is believed that each of these seven planets will be studied by Webb.

Planets

As we mentioned earlier, the planets in the Trappist-1 system are different from the planets in our solar system. First, all Trappist planets orbit very close to their stars. In fact, they are so close that if we combine their orbits, they are about the same as the orbit of Mercury. For example, Trappist-1b takes only 1.5 days to orbit its star but has the same size and mass as Earth. More than that, is it a coincidence that all Trappist-1 planets appear to be rocky, and all are similar to Earth, including mass and size?

Sadly, even so, they are not necessarily habitable. Some are too hot and some are too cold. Although by combining direct observations with computer-generated models, scientists believe that their densities are similar to those of our planet. But again, we can't tell if they are barren and gray, like the moon, or moist and green, like Earth. Density, while an important clue to a planet's composition, doesn't tell us anything about its habitability. Not only are they all rocky planets, but some of them have liquid water as well. Nonetheless, it is unclear whether this water would exist in a liquid state like the water on Earth. It is these similarities that make the Trappist-1 system one of the most important galaxies for scientists to study because it is so similar to our star system!

With any luck, it might even help us answer the most scientific and philosophical question of all time: Are we alone? We know that every planet in our solar system plays a very important role, and there are many planets out there that are very different from ours. This raises the question, how did our solar system come to be? Perhaps the James Webb Space Telescope will soon answer these questions, as it has already released its first exoplanet images to the world.

According to Webb's team, JWST will spend a quarter of its lifetime studying exoplanets, with 8.2 percent of that time spent observing the Trappist-1 system. a major theme of JWST observations is atmospheric reconnaissance to see if an atmosphere exists around the Trappist-1 planets. Scientists have already tried to probe the atmosphere using the Hubble Space Telescope, but have failed to find any solids. In summary, JWST is designed to detect what the Hubble telescope will never be able to detect! If an atmosphere is found around the planet TRAPPIST-1, it will be extremely important for exoplanet research.

Some scientists hypothesize that stellar flares in this system may have destroyed the atmospheres of rocky planets because these planets are so close to their host stars that they can easily cause tidal locking if they are too close. Tidal locking, a gravitational mechanism that affects near-Earth planets and keeps one hemisphere of the planet facing the star at all times, could significantly alter the characteristics of these atmospheres. Depending on the presence of oceans, plate tectonics, and even life, geological and biological processes can circulate carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen through the atmospheres of rocky planets, resulting in a variety of compositions. But to study these issues, a sample must first be found. And this star system may be the key to unlocking the possibility of planetary habitability!

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About the Creator

Monu Ella

And I know it's long gone and there was nothing else I could do

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