{"id":19265,"date":"2016-08-31T17:55:17","date_gmt":"2016-08-31T09:55:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/proximas-progress-why-itll-take-years-to-learn-what-closest-exoplanet-is-really-like\/"},"modified":"2016-08-31T17:55:17","modified_gmt":"2016-08-31T09:55:17","slug":"proximas-progress-why-itll-take-years-to-learn-what-closest-exoplanet-is-really-like","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/proximas-progress-why-itll-take-years-to-learn-what-closest-exoplanet-is-really-like\/","title":{"rendered":"Proxima\u2019s progress: Why it\u2019ll take years to learn what closest exoplanet is really like"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Proxima
An artist\u2019s conception shows a view of the surface of the planet Proxima b, with the red dwarf Proxima Centauri near the horizon. (Credi:t: M. Kornmesser \/ ESO)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

University of Washington astronomer Rory Barnes says Proxima Centauri b is the biggest discovery in 20 years for planet hunters like himself, but it could take another 20 years to find out just how livable it is.<\/p>\n

The alien planet orbits a red-dwarf star at a distance that puts it in a zone where liquid water could conceivably exist. The fact that such a world circles the sun\u2019s nearest stellar neighbor, 4.2 light-years away, puts it on top of the list of potentially habitable planets beyond our solar system.<\/p>\n

Barnes, however, emphasizes the word \u201cpotentially.\u201d During a lecture at Seattle\u2019s Pacific Science Center, set for 7:30 p.m. tonight, the UW astronomer will delve into the opportunities and obstacles for life on Proxima Centauri b.<\/p>\n

\"Rory
The University of Washington\u2019s Rory Barnes is a theorist in the Virtual Planetary Laboratory, primarily interested in the formation and evolution of habitable planets. (Credit: UW)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re looking at a 15- to 20-year time frame before we can answer this question of whether it\u2019s habitable,\u201d Barnes told GeekWire in advance of the talk.<\/p>\n

Over the course of the past 16 years, astronomers have determined that the planet is at least 1.3 times as massive as Earth. Its orbit brings it far closer to its parent star, Proxima Centauri, than Mercury is to our own sun. But because Proxima Centauri is so much dimmer than our sun, Proxima b is in what\u2019s known as the star\u2019s habitable zone.<\/p>\n

That checks off an essential box for life as we know it. But only one box.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe found it, but we know next to nothing about it,\u201d Barnes said. \u201cBeing in the habitable zone doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s habitable. It just means we have a shot at it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Astronomers need to know whether the planet is rocky, like Earth. (They think it is.) They also need to know whether it has a protective atmosphere and magnetic field. (They hope it does.)<\/p>\n

If Proxima b\u2019s atmosphere is thick enough, it can distribute the wan heat from its parent star around the planet. A strong magnetic field would help Proxima b fend off stellar radiation flares and keep its atmosphere, as is the case for Earth. But there are also scenarios in which Proxima b is an airless Mercury-type world, or a gassy Neptune-type world.<\/p>\n