Unseen Worlds Orbiting Distant Suns
May 8th 2011 06:42
Category: Stars
Binary Stars A and B (indicated by the red circle) image Akira Fujii Edited by Carlcan
Ever wondered how many earth like planets are out there orbiting distant stars. Perhaps we are the only one in existence. That does not mean that our planet is the only ‘Earth’ in the universe.
After all the universe has been around for billions of years. it is very likely that at some time during the evolution of the universe other civilizations like ours may have evolved and then died out.
Its not inconceivable that other earth like planets are forming some may have primitive life forms others may have a much more advanced life forms. If you take into account the drake equation the chances of other life forms existing elsewhere in the universe are encouraging.
Since the 1990s discoveries of exoplanets have increased dramatically.
If you are fortunate to live in a location with low light pollution and the sky is clear you will be able to see 55 Cancri located in the constellation of Cancer. 55 Cancri is a binary star it has a another star in close proximity a yellow dwarf star and a smaller red dwarf star. Each star is seperated by 1,000 Astronomical Unit that equates to a distance of one thousand times the distance from our Sun to the Earth.
Although 55 Cancri is very dim (a pair of binoculars will enhance your view) when seen with the naked eye, 55 Cancri has a vary remarkable companion.
Its is the only visible naked eye star found so far to have a massive planet.
Planet 55 Cancri e, is the closest planet to orbit it’s star. Another five planet are known to be orbiting the same star.
Planet 55 Cancri e is estimated to a vey large planet much bigger than our earth, it has the distinction to be the only planet that be seen form Earth crossing the surface of a distant star.
The star system 55 Cancri is only a stone’s throw away at a mere 41 light years for us. Star 55 Cancri is very similar to our Sun only cooler and less bright.
It was assumed that 55 Cnc e revolves around the star once every 2.8 days, later calculations revised the planet’s orbital speed around it’s Sun as being a brisk 17 hours 41 minutes.
The techniques used to discover distant planets is to observe how a star ‘moves’. Distant planets may cause the parent star to wobble slightly any ‘wobble’ detected is due in part to the less visible planet’s gravitational force displacing the star’s normal orbital rotation.
The research team has observed 17 transits of 55 Cnc e using Canada's MOST (Microvariability and Oscillations of Stars) satellite, the world’s first astroseismology space telescope. The specialized telescope studies the internal pulsations of stars by tracking many small variations in a particular star’s brightness level.
Next time you look up and see the stars any number of them may have planets forging a new beginning.
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Comment by S.L.
The Political Brief
Comment by CarlCan
Astroearth
Camera Sense
No exact estimate on how close the planet is to its Sun, but the planet’s orbit is extremely close to the parent star.
The conditions on that planet would not be pleasant. The temperatures would be in the extreme range not to mention the vast amount of solar radiation would be lethal to humans. perhaps other life forms may survive in these conditions.
Comment by S.L.
The Political Brief