Astronomers think the most likely place to find life in the galaxy is on super-Earths, like Kepler-69c, seen in this artist's rendering. NASA Ames/JPL-CalTech
Astronomers think the most likely place to find life in the galaxy is on super-Earths, like Kepler-69c, seen in this artist's rendering. NASA Ames/JPL-CalTech

Outside of the solar system, exoplanets are planets that are not in the solar system. In the summer of 2022, teams working on NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite found a few planets in the right places.

A planet that is 30% larger than Earth is in motion in less than a day. It's 70% larger than the Earth and could hold a deep ocean. The planets are larger than the Earth but smaller than ice giants.

I am a professor of astronomy and study astronomy. I'm following the search for planets that might host life.

Scientists believe that Earth is the only place in the universe where life exists. It would make sense to look for life on Earth clones, which are close to Earth. Recent research shows that the best chance of finding life on another planet is likely to be on a super- Earth.

A super-Earth is any rocky planet that is bigger than Earth and smaller than Neptune. Aldaron, CC BY-SA

Common and easy to find

Cool dwarf stars are lower in mass than the Sun and live a long time. The Sun is one of hundreds of cool dwarf stars and 40% of them are super-earths. Astronomers estimate that there are tens of billions of super-Earths in the right places where liquid water can be found. Habitability is thought to be dependent on water.

Super-Earths are the most common type of exoplanet in the universe. It's only six light-years away. Our solar system doesn't have a planet with a mass between Earth and Neptune, so it's unusual.

Most exoplanets are discovered by looking for how they dim the light coming from their parent stars, so bigger planets are easier to find. Nikola Smolenski, CC BY-SA
Most exoplanets are discovered by looking for how they dim the light coming from their parent stars, so bigger planets are easier to find. Nikola Smolenski, CC BY-SA

Earth-sized planets are more difficult to detect and study than super-Earths. Two methods are used to find exoplanets. One looks for the effect of a planet on a star while the other looks for a brief dimming of a star's light. It's easier to detect with a bigger planet.

Super-Earths are super habitable

The best of all possible worlds was argued over 300 years ago. The question of why evil exists was supposed to be addressed by Leibniz, but modern Astrobiologists have instead asked what makes a planet hospitable to life. Earth is not the best place to live.

The climate has changed over time due to Earth's tectonic activity and changes in the sun's brightness. Humans and other large animals have not been able to live on Earth for 4.5 billion years. The long-term habitability of Earth was a matter of chance according to simulations. Humans are fortunate to be alive.

A list of attributes that make a planet a good place to live has been created by researchers. Scientists believe that larger planets are more likely to be geologically active. The largest planet in our solar system would be between 20% and 30% larger than the Earth. It would have oceans that are shallow enough for light to penetrate and an average temperature of 25 degrees Celsius. The atmosphere would be thicker than the Earth's and would act as an insulation blanket. The planet would have a strong magnetic field and be older than the Sun to give it more time to grow. According to scientists, these attributes will make a planet super warm.

Super-Earths have many of the attributes of a planet with a high degree of liquid water. Astronomers have discovered two dozen super-Earth exoplanets that are theoretically more hospitable than Earth.

There is a new addition to the inventory of planets. Billions of exoplanets can be found in the star systems of the Milky Way. If a super-Earth is ejected from its star system and has a dense atmosphere and watery surface, it could last for tens of billions of years.

Detecting life on super-Earths

Astronomers will look for biosignatures in a planet's atmosphere to detect life on other planets.

The telescope is not appropriate for exoplanet research because it was designed before the discovery of planets. In its first year of operations, it will target two potentially habitable super- Earths. Another set of super-Earths with massive oceans discovered in the past few years, as well as the planets discovered this summer, are also compelling targets.

The next generation of giant, ground-based telescopes will be able to find signs of life in exoplanet atmospheres. By the end of the decade, these telescopes are going to collect data.

The ingredients for life are out there, but not inhabited. It is1-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-6556 Humans may be forced to conclude that the universe is a lonely place if there is no sign of life over the next few years.

The Conversation is a news site that shares ideas from academic experts. Chris Impey was the writer. Do you like this article?

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