Meddelande

ESOcast 87: Planet found around closest Star

24 augusti 2016

This is the ESOcast that no viewer will want to miss.  We discuss the result of the quest to find a planet around the closest star to the Solar System.

The Pale Red Dot campaign aimed to find a planet orbiting our nearest stellar neighbour, Proxima Centauri. Incredibly, the quest succeeded and the team did indeed find a planet. Even more excitingly, the planet, Proxima b, falls within the habitable zone of its host star. The newly discovered Proxima b is by far the closest potential abode for alien life.

In this ESOcast, the results of this groundbreaking research are explained in detail, providing insights into the following points:

• The extensive verification process the team went through to ensure this result was accurate.
• The factors for and against the possibility of life on Proxima b.
• The nature of a “habitable zone” around a star.

The discovery of Proxima b is a major science result, making this ESOcast a must for those of you curious about one of the most intriguing questions in astronomy — “are we alone?”

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Länkar

• Watch and download ESOcast 87

Kontakter

Richard Hook
ESO Public Information Officer
Garching bei München, Germany
Tel: +49 89 3200 6655
Cell: +49 151 1537 3591
Email: rhook@eso.org