The Webb Space Telescope has found no evidence of an atmosphere at one of the seven rocky, Earth-sized planets orbiting another star. The lack of an atmosphere would mean no water and no protection from cosmic rays, a lead researcher said.
This illustration provided by the European Space Agency depicts what the exoplanet TRAPPIST-1 b could look like. On Monday, March 27, 2023, scientists said the Webb Space Telescope has found no evidence of an atmosphere at this innermost of the seven rocky, Earth-sized planets orbiting the nearby star, named Trappist. , T. P. Greene , T. Bell , E. Ducrot , P. Lagage via AP)This illustration provided by the European Space Agency depicts what the exoplanet TRAPPIST-1 b could look like.
“This is not necessarily a bust” for the other planets, Massachusetts Institute of Technology astrophysicist Sara Seager, who wasn’t part of the study, said in an email. “But we will have to wait and see.” The lack of an atmosphere would mean no water and no protection from cosmic rays, said lead researcher Thomas Greene of NASA’s Ames Research Center.As for the other planets orbiting the small, feeble Trappist star, “I would have been more optimistic about the others” having atmospheres if this one had, Greene said in an email.
By using Webb — the largest and most powerful telescope ever sent into space — the U.S. and French scientists were able to measure the change in brightness as the innermost planet moved behind its star and estimate how much infrared light was emitted from the planet. Further research could still uncover an atmosphere of sorts, even if it’s not exactly like what’s seen on Earth, said Michael Gillon of the University of Liege in Belgium who was part of the team that discovered the first three Trappist planets in 2016. He did not take part in the latest study.
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