Exoplanet discovery: Barnard's star, the nearest single star to Earth, has a tiny planet Barnard b
Bernard b is shown orbiting Bernard's star in this animation screenshot. Courtesy: European Southern Observatory/YouTube Photograph:( Others )
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Barnard b exoplanet discovery: Barnard's star, the nearest single star to Earth, was found to have a planet orbiting around it. The red dwarf star's newly discovered sub-Earth planet has been named Barnard b. But could there be life, or a habitable zone in this low-mass exoplanet, offering a galactic neighbourhood for Earth? Find out here
Barnard b exoplanet discovery: Barnard's star, the nearest single star to Earth, was found to have a planet orbiting around it. The red dwarf star's newly discovered sub-Earth planet has been named Barnard b. But could there be life, or a habitable zone in this low-mass exoplanet, offering a galactic neighbourhood for Earth? Find out here
Barnard's star is the closest solo star to the solar system. Now, scientists have discovered a planet orbiting it. The exoplanet, or sub-earth, has been named Barnard b.
The exoplanet is located six light years away from us. It weighs 37 per cent of our planet, which is about half the size of Venus. It is classified as a sub-planet due to such low mass.
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Similar to what happens in our solar system, the exoplanet is seen revolving around Barnard's star, which is a red dwarf.
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As per NASA's description, red dwarfs have only a fraction of the Sun’s size and mass. They’re also the coolest stars and appear more orange in colour than red. Barnard's star, for instance, is 2,500 degrees cooler than the Sun.
It takes more than three Earth days for the sub-earth Barnard b to orbit around Barnard's star, also known as GJ 699.
But could there be life in Barnard b?
No, as the exoplanet is not located in the habitable zone. It is 1.8 million miles from Barnard's star, which is considered a close orbit. This makes it impossible for liquid water to form on Barnard b. Therefore, there may not be life in the sub-earth as we know it.
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"Barnard b is one of the lowest-mass exoplanets known and one of the few known with a mass less than that of Earth. But the planet is too close to the host star, closer than the habitable zone," team leader Jonay González Hernández, from the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias in Spain, said.
"Even if the star is about 2,500 degrees cooler than our sun, it is too hot to maintain liquid water on the surface," ScienceAlert quoted him as saying.
Astronomers have been looking at exoplanets as they could offer clues into how life is formed, and if there are hospitable planets other than our Earth.
The detection of Barnard b happened after years of research. It was made possible by the Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile.
The astronomers were initially able to detect Barnard b's gravitational effects on its host star.
There were hints of the existence of the planet since 2018. Following closer observation, Barnard b was located by scientists, who also think there may be at least three more exoplanets orbiting Barnard's star.
"Even if it took a long time, we were always confident that we could find something," Space.com quoted astronomer Jonay González Hernández of the Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands in Spain as saying.
Barnard's star is a constant subject of observation and curiosity for astronomers, as it could offer insights into the existence of star-planet systems similar to our solar system, that could potentially host life.
(With inputs from agencies)
