Source: Cosmos Magazine

There are many exciting opportunities that are presenting themselves, and we are getting nearer to finding a planet like earth that can support life.

DISCOVERING EARTHLIKE PLANETS

N EW TECHNOLOGY BRINGS ASTRONOMERS CLOSER TO NEW WORLDS

May 2015

IS EARTH REALLY A DIAMOND IN THE

ROUGH?
Since the moment humans have discovered that there are other
planets, other solar systems and other galaxies in space, we
have wondered are there aliens? Is there a planet many lightyears away that houses strange and unidentifiable beings?
From mythology to science fiction, the phenomenon that life may
exist outside of planet earth has proven to be a captivating topic
to consider. Therefore it only makes sense that when
appropriate technology was created, astronomers eagerly took
the chance to find out for themselves whether there could be
some truth to all the stories. But first they had to know what to
look for. When one is able to comprehend just how large and
unexplained much of the universe really is, how is it possible to
know exactly what to look for?
When the idea that there are planets made of material unknown
to humans may exist, it is logical to turn to what we do know a
planet that already boasts a myriad of life: Planet Earth.

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Source: Wallpapers Wild

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Earth is a unique planet, to say the least.

It is habitable and hospitable, enough to
support life as we know it. Astronomers
believe that when a planet has similar
properties with Earth, chances are, life
exists. [5]

Exoplanets are planets found outside of our solar system. There

are various ways of detecting the presence and characteristics
of these bodies. The most common methods in detecting
exoplanets include the pulsar timing method, Doppler technique,
astrometric technique and transit method. [1]

Pulsar-timing
Pulsar timing method is an effective way to detect
exoplanets. Pulsars are stars that emit electromagnetic radiation
in a very regular interval and an orbiting planet will cause slight
variations in the detected pulses which can used to detect it. [1]
Its high precision allows astronomers to be able to indicate
whether an exoplanet is fit for earth-like species. For example,
many of the exoplanets that have been discovered were found
to have high levels of radiation much too high for life to survive
in.

Doppler Technique
Planets exert a gravitational pull on its own star. This
change in motion can be produce a Doppler shift. A red shift
indicates that it is pulled away from us while a blue shift
indicates that it is pulled towards us. By measuring the velocity
of this motion, the exoplanets minimum mass can be
determined. [1]

Exoplanets the basics

The first planet outside the Solar
System (called an exoplanet) discovered in
1995 was found to be hotter than Mercury and
half the size of Jupiter. [2] This discovery had
increased interest in developing sophisticated
methods to identify and locate other
exoplanets nearby the Solar System and
possibly, Earth-like planets. Through these
methods of detecting exoplanets, the size,
composition and distance to the star of these
exoplanets can be now be determined,
increasing the possibility of discovering these
Earth-like planets. [1]
For an exoplanet to be Earth-like, it
has to be residing in the habitable zone,
where liquid water could exist and the
environment to be in a suitable temperature
range. But first, they have to be detected.
Detecting exoplanets is not easy, as they
dont emit light of their own. [1]

Astrometric Technique
The position of a star in the sky changes a little bit when
exoplanets are orbiting it due to gravitational pulls. These really
small shifts can be used to measure the masses and orbits of all
planets orbiting it. However, the changes are so small that it is
difficult to measure these changes. [1]

Finding a needle in the haystack

Of the innumerable amount of planets that exist, how do we
determine which are earth-like? Putting it simply, they must lie in
the habitable zone. Liquid water is vital, meaning that the planet
has to have the appropriate atmospheric pressure and mustnt be
too hot or too cold this is often referred to as the goldilocks zone.

Source: CSIC

Astronomers who study the distance and orbital period of these

exoplanets are able to work out their surface temperature. If a
planets orbital period is too small, it means they are too close to
their star and are therefore too hot to support life. Conversely, a
planet with a large period will be too far away from its sun. These
calculations vary for different stars so each have different zones. [5]
2

con
t.

Transit Method

A transit is when a planet passes in front of its star.

The resulting decline in brightness can be measured to
determine the planets radius. Also, through the
measurement of the resulting light curve, the size and orbit
can be determined as well. [4]
Source: NASA

The Kepler Space te

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A shiny new toy

tist.

NASA launched the Kepler Space telescope on March 6th

2009 [3]. It is the most advanced spacecraft that has
allowed astronomers to explore the galaxies for earth-like
planets. In space, it stays stationary, observing one small
patch of space. Of the 35 000 plants that Kepler has
found, many resemble those found in our own solar
system such as gaseous supergiants, but also ones
seemingly only possible in science fiction such as
molten surfaced plants or those that orbit two stars. [4]

Examples of earth-like planets

1.

Kepler 22B
This is the first exoplanet in the habitable

Keplers main job however, is to find planets that are

habitable by humans (and perhaps already house other
life forms). Unfortunately, this is inconvenienced by the
brightness of the stars that often shield the planets. To
work around this, Kepler looks out for transits. A transit
occurs when the planet passes over a star during its
orbit, causing a decline in the brightness which Kepler
very accurately detects. So the bigger the planet, the
more light is dimmed from the star, and vice versa [5].
They use the transit method to look for Earth-like planets,
as portrayed in figure 1. It can measure a decline of
0.008% in brightness, making it very reliable. [3]

zone to be confirmed. This planet is 600 light

years away from earth and its radius is 2.4
times as big. The temperature on Kepler 22B
is 22 C [5]

2.

Kepler 168f
Suggested to be a rocky planet because of
its size, 168f is about 500 light years away
from earth and orbits a red dwarf star. It is
10% larger than earth and orbits once every
130 days [6].

3.

Kepler 62e and 62f

Both these planets are thought to be covered
in water whether liquid or solid. 62e might
even have flashes of lightening (water state
unknown), while 62f may have polar caps,
land masses and liquid water. They are both
around 1200 light years away from Earth [7].

Figure 1: Kepler making use of the transits.

Source: Space.com

What can we expect in the future?

With technology constantly evolving, new missions are on the near horizon.
Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) is scheduled to launch in 2017. It operates similarly to the Kepler Telescope, but instead
of only examining a single patch of sky, TESS can scan our entire galactic neighbourhood. The mission demands a cool $200 million.
But the wealth of new planets that TESS will find will keep astronomers very busy.
Another spacecraft, ExoplanetSat is a nano-satellite, the size of a loaf of bread. Its job will be to find a transiting planet like our earth
that is orbiting a sun-like star. The success of this mission will let us know which stars in the nights sky have planets orbiting them.
An exciting future holds for the discovery of new planets and well as the exploration of the ones we already know of. [8]

The discovery of Earth-like planets is a promising field. With

new information flooding in every mission, the opportunities
for mankind is growing rapidly. Perhaps we will even find a
new home in the heavens!

WRITTEN BY APOORVA MADHUSUDHAN AND KENNETH RUEDA

References
[1] http://www.superwasp.org/exoplanets.htm Retrieved 17 May
2015
[2] http://jumk.de/astronomie/exoplanets/51-pegasi.shtml
Retrieved 17 May 2015
[3] http://www.nae.edu/File.aspx?id=15945 Retrieved 17 May
[4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DD6QHP9ouuU Retrieved
17 May 2015
[5] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DD6QHP9ouuU Retrieved
16 May 2015
[6] http://www.openminds.tv/nasa-discovers-potentially-habitablealien-world-far/27002 Retrieved 17 May 2015
[7] http://www.3plearning.com/potentially-habitable-earth-likeplanets-discovered/ Retrieved 17 May 2015
[8] http://www.universetoday.com/105992/life-after-keplerupcoming-exoplanet-missions/ Retrieved 17 May 2015