Seven Worlds for TRAPPIST 1
Explanation:
Seven worlds orbit the ultracool dwarf star TRAPPIST-1,
a mere 40 light-years away.
In May 2016
astronomers using the Transiting Planets and Planetesimals
Small Telescope (TRAPPIST) announced the discovery of three
planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system.
Just announced,
additional confirmations and discoveries by the
Spitzer Space Telescope and supporting ESO ground-based telescopes
have increased the number of known planets to
seven.
The
TRAPPIST-1
planets are likely all rocky and
similar in size to Earth, the largest
treasure
trove of terrestrial planets ever detected around
a single star.
Because they orbit very close to their faint, tiny star
they could also have regions where surface temperatures
allow for the presence
of liquid water, a key ingredient for life.
Their
tantalizing proximity
to Earth makes them prime candidates for future
telescopic explorations of the atmospheres of
potentially habitable planets.
All seven worlds appear in
this artist's
illustration, an imagined view from a
fictionally powerful telescope near planet Earth.
Planet sizes and relative positions are drawn to scale for
the Spitzer observations.
The system's inner planets are transiting
their dim, red, nearly Jupiter-sized parent star.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
