One in four stars 'may have Earth-like planets in orbit around them' - The Universe is teeming with planets capable of supporting alien life, astronomers say.
Researchers who studied stars similar to the Sun found that almost one in four could have small, rocky planets just like the Earth.
And many of these worlds may occupy that ‘Goldilocks’ zone – where conditions are neither too hot nor too cold for water, and possibly life.
An artist's impression of Gliese 581 g which scientists believe is orbiting a planet around 20 light years away
Their findings show how there could be tens of billions of planets like the Earth in our own galaxy alone – and trillions upon trillions of planets able to support life throughout the Universe.
For their research, scientists spent five years studying 166 Sun-like stars within 80 light years – or 470 trillion miles – of Earth.
But as planets outside our own solar system are too far away and too small to see directly with telescopes, astronomers study distant stars for tell-tale ‘wobbles’ which occur when stars are pulled by a planet’s gravity.
In the last decade, nearly 500 planets have been discovered outside the solar system this way.
The latest study, published in the journal Science, found that Earth-like planets were relatively common.
Gliese 581g mapped onto our own solar system to show how its orbit compares to that of Earth and Venus. Scientists now believe there are many Earth-like planets around distant stars
Researcher Dr Andrew Howard, said: ‘Of about 100 typical Sun-like stars, one or two have planets the size of Jupiter, roughly six have a planet the size of Neptune, and about 12 have super-Earths between three and ten Earth masses.
‘If we extrapolate down to Earth-size planets between one-half and two times the mass of Earth, we predict that you’d find about 23 for every 100 stars,’ added Dr Howard, from the University of California at Berkeley.
The technique can only detect planets orbiting close to their stars. That means the true number of planets could be much higher.
Over the next decade, new methods of planet detection and more powerful telescopes could soon be uncovering true Earth-like worlds orbiting distant stars, the scientists said.
‘These results will transform astronomers’ views of how planets form,’ said researcher Professor Geoffrey Marcy, one of the world’s leading planet-hunters.
The astronomers used the twin 10meter Keck telescopes in Hawaii to carry out their research on yellow G-type stars like the Sun, or slightly smaller orange-red stars known as K-type dwarfs.
Over the five years, 33 planets circling 22 stars were detected.
Last month, astronomers announced the discovery of the most Earth-like planet ever found – a rocky world three times the size of our own world, orbiting a star 20 light years away.
The planet appears to have an atmosphere, a gravity like our own – and could have flowing water on its surface. ( dailymail.co.uk )
Researchers who studied stars similar to the Sun found that almost one in four could have small, rocky planets just like the Earth.
And many of these worlds may occupy that ‘Goldilocks’ zone – where conditions are neither too hot nor too cold for water, and possibly life.
An artist's impression of Gliese 581 g which scientists believe is orbiting a planet around 20 light years away
Their findings show how there could be tens of billions of planets like the Earth in our own galaxy alone – and trillions upon trillions of planets able to support life throughout the Universe.
For their research, scientists spent five years studying 166 Sun-like stars within 80 light years – or 470 trillion miles – of Earth.
But as planets outside our own solar system are too far away and too small to see directly with telescopes, astronomers study distant stars for tell-tale ‘wobbles’ which occur when stars are pulled by a planet’s gravity.
In the last decade, nearly 500 planets have been discovered outside the solar system this way.
The latest study, published in the journal Science, found that Earth-like planets were relatively common.
Gliese 581g mapped onto our own solar system to show how its orbit compares to that of Earth and Venus. Scientists now believe there are many Earth-like planets around distant stars
Researcher Dr Andrew Howard, said: ‘Of about 100 typical Sun-like stars, one or two have planets the size of Jupiter, roughly six have a planet the size of Neptune, and about 12 have super-Earths between three and ten Earth masses.
‘If we extrapolate down to Earth-size planets between one-half and two times the mass of Earth, we predict that you’d find about 23 for every 100 stars,’ added Dr Howard, from the University of California at Berkeley.
The technique can only detect planets orbiting close to their stars. That means the true number of planets could be much higher.
Over the next decade, new methods of planet detection and more powerful telescopes could soon be uncovering true Earth-like worlds orbiting distant stars, the scientists said.
‘These results will transform astronomers’ views of how planets form,’ said researcher Professor Geoffrey Marcy, one of the world’s leading planet-hunters.
The astronomers used the twin 10meter Keck telescopes in Hawaii to carry out their research on yellow G-type stars like the Sun, or slightly smaller orange-red stars known as K-type dwarfs.
Over the five years, 33 planets circling 22 stars were detected.
Last month, astronomers announced the discovery of the most Earth-like planet ever found – a rocky world three times the size of our own world, orbiting a star 20 light years away.
The planet appears to have an atmosphere, a gravity like our own – and could have flowing water on its surface. ( dailymail.co.uk )
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