Tiny Planets Discovered Orbiting One of Our Nearest Stars!

Washington D.C., [USA], March 12 (ANI): Astronomers have uncovered fresh evidence indicating the presence of not one but four small planets orbiting Barnard’s Star.
Star
the star system second closest to Earth

The four planets, each roughly 20 to 30 percent the mass of Earth, orbit extremely closely to their parent star, completing one revolution in just a few days. This proximity likely makes them too warm to support life; however, this discovery sets a significant milestone for identifying more petite worlds around neighboring stars.

It’s truly an exhilarating discovery — Barnard’s Star
Star
is our close celestial neighbor, but we still have much to learn about it,” stated Ritvik Basant, a Ph.D. student at the University of Chicago and lead author of the study. “This marks a significant advancement thanks to the improved accuracy of these cutting-edge tools compared to those from earlier times.

This discovery lends more credibility to a November study conducted by another group utilizing a separate telescope, where they found substantial proof of a single planet orbiting Barnard’s Star.
Star
and hints at others.

The latest research, involving experts from the Gemini Observatory/National Science Foundation NOIRLab, Heidelberg University, and the University of Amsterdam, will be released on March 11 in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

For a hundred years, astronomers have been researching Barnard’s star.
Star
In the hope of discovering planets orbiting it, this celestial body was first identified by E.E. Barnard at Yerkes Observatory back in 1916. It stands as our closest neighbor configured similarly to ours—specifically, featuring just a single star. (Notably, the very closest stellar system to Earth, Proxima Centauri, comprises three stars revolving around each other, altering the conditions for planetary formation and orbital patterns.)

Barnard’s
Star
There exists a category known as an M dwarf star, which we have learned are incredibly abundant throughout the cosmos. Consequently, researchers are eager to gain deeper insights into the types of planets these stars harbor.

The issue is that distant exoplanets are incredibly small compared to their dazzling stars, making them nearly impossible to observe using even our strongest telescopes. As a result, researchers have been compelled to adopt innovative methods to detect these elusive worlds.

An initiative like this was spearheaded by University of Chicago Professor Jacob Bean. His group developed and set up a device named MAROON-X, which is mounted on the Gemini telescope atop a mountain in Hawaii. This equipment is particularly built to hunt for far-off exoplanets.

Since stars greatly outshine their planets, it’s simpler to observe the impact that planets have on their stars — akin to gauging the breeze by observing the movement of a flag.

MAROON-X searches for this phenomenon where the gravitational pull from each planet causes slight movements in the star’s location, making it appear as though the star is oscillating back and forth. By measuring the starlight with exceptional precision, MAROON-X can detect these subtle changes and determine not only how many planets are orbiting the star but also their respective masses. (ANI)