Detecting water on a distant planet

An international team of astronomers found water vapor in the atmosphere of a planet outside the solar system.

American Keck Observatory announces Quinn Konopacky, an astronomer from the Dunlap Astronomical and Astronomical Institute of the University of Toronto in Canada, and colleagues using the Keck II telescope on the Hawaiian Islands, USA to observe outside the solar system. They discovered water in the atmosphere of a planet the size of Jupiter.

HR 8799c , the name of the planet, about 130 light-years from Earth. It is quite far from its own star so astronomers can observe it easily.

"We can see the details of the planet thanks to the extremely advanced equipment of Keck Observatory, our groundbreaking observation and data collection techniques, as well as characteristics. Konopacky said.

Planet HR 8799c is quite far from its own star so the celestial houses
Literature can observe it easily. (Photo: Keck Observatory)

Keck II telescope is capable of analyzing spectra from objects in the universe to identify chemicals. Based on the results of its analysis, Konopacky's group found that the atmosphere of the planet contained water vapor and carbon monoxide.

"With the ability of Keck II glass, we can compare the amount of carbon with atmospheric oxygen of HR 8799c. The comparison results will help us understand its formation process" , Travis Barman, a home Astronomy of Lowell Observatory and also a member of the research team, affirmed.

Water is an essential compound for life on earth. So scientists think that, if water exists on a planet, life is likely to exist on that planet.