Finding other planets the same size as ours can surely be a goldmine! Astronomers had been burning the midnight oil trying to find an “Earth 2.0” planet out there. If a planet is located in the “Goldilocks Zone” of its solar system, it features a solid surface, as well as if it has a similar size to Earth, it means that the chances are considerable for some alien forms of life to exist there as well!
According to scitechdaily.com, scientists from MIT have participated in the discovery of a multiplanet system that’s believed to be featuring two planets the size of Earth that revolve around the small M-dwarf star known as HD 260655. NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) had initially made the discovery. But still, there’s no use in opening the champagne just yet!
No liquid water can exist on the newfound exoplanets
Scientists calculated that the two rocky Earth-sized worlds are too hot to sustain liquid water on their surface. Without liquid water, the presence of life as we know it is impossible. But since nobody knows for sure how many other different combinations life can require on other planets to develop, there’s still worth exploring the two exoplanets in more detail. Furthermore, they’re located roughly 33 light-years away from Earth, which practically means “next-door” .
Michelle Kunimoto, who’s one of the lead scientists of the discovery and a postdoc in the Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research of the MIT, explained as scitechdaily.com quotes:
Both planets in this system are each considered among the best targets for atmospheric study because of the brightness of their star,
Is there a volatile-rich atmosphere around these planets? And are there signs of water or carbon-based species? These planets are fantastic test beds for those explorations.
Just a few days ago, China’s “Sky Eye” telescope had intercepted unusual signals from space, and there could be a chance that they have their origin in alien civilizations.
