This exoplanet is 15 times closer to its star than Earth is to the Sun.
A team of German scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy has discovered a new planet that could potentially be habitable.
It turned out to be a rocky exoplanet called Wolf 1069b. It is located 31 light years away from us, reports Science Alert.
According to scientists, the mass of this planet is 1.36 times greater than the mass of the Earth. It makes a complete revolution around the star in 15.6 days and is placed 15 times closer to it than the Earth is to the Sun. Despite this, the planet is not hot – it revolves around a red dwarf, which is much colder than the Sun.
Astronomers note that Wolf 1069b is similar to Mercury and may have a temperature of about -23°С. This is very cold for liquid water, which without an atmosphere would have turned to steam anyway. According to scientists, to learn more about the suitability of Wolf 1069b for life, we have to wait about ten years.
The latest discoveries of astronomers
As previously reported, scientists discovered two “water worlds” in space.
At the end of 2022, astronomers discovered an exoplanet spiraling towards its star. It is doomed to collision and destruction.
