Astronomers found new Earth-sized planet where days and nights are never-ending

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Ultra-cool red dwarf stars account for around 70 per cent of all stars in our galaxy. They have a lifespan of about 100 billion years 

Astronomers have detected a new Earth-sized planet, which is just 55 light-years away. It is orbiting an ultra-cool red dwarf star. The discovery is published in Nature Astronomy. The international team of astronomers revealed that the planet is only the second of its kind to be discovered around this type of star. 

The star, known as SPECULOOS-3 b, takes approximately 17 hours to complete an orbit, meaning a year on the planet is shorter than a single Earth day. 

It is more than twice as cold as our sun. The astronomers said that it is ten times less massive and one hundred times less luminous. As per the discovery, days and nights on SPECULOOS-3 b are endless. 

As quoted by phys.org, Michaël Gillon, who is an astronomer at the University of Liège in Belgium and also the lead author of the study, said, "We believe that the planet rotates synchronously, so that the same side, called the day side, always faces the star, just like the moon does for the Earth. On the other hand, the night side hand, would be locked in endless darkness." 

Ultra-cool red dwarf stars account for around 70 per cent of all stars in our galaxy. They have a lifespan of about 100 billion years, making them competitors for the final stars to shine in the universe. 

It also becomes important for astronomers to monitor them for several weeks to identify planets passing in front of them because they are so weak and scattered throughout the sky. 

The SPECULOOS project aided the discovery, which is led by the University of Liège, in Belgium, in collaboration with the Universities of Birmingham, Cambridge, Bern, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

SPECULOOS (Search for Planets EClipsing ULtra-cOOl Stars) looks for potentially habitable exoplanets around the smallest and coldest stars of the solar neighbourhood with the help of robotic telescopes based around the world. 

Gillon said, "We designed SPECULOOS specifically to observe nearby ultracool dwarf stars in search of rocky planets that lend themselves well to detailed studies." 

"In 2017, our SPECULOOS prototype using the TRAPPIST telescope discovered the famous TRAPPIST-1 system made up of seven Earth-sized planets, several of them potentially habitable. This was an excellent start," he added. 

(With inputs from agencies)

Srishti Singh Sisodia

Srishti Singh Sisodia is a digital journalist at WION and majorly writes on world politics. She is a die-hard FCBarcelona fan. She follows world sports and likes