Super-Earth discovered very close to the solar system

Astronomers found the exoplanet Proxima c orbiting the red dwarf Proxima Centauri, only 4.2 light-years from Earth.

Proxima c is considered to be a super Earth when it is larger than our planet but smaller than Uranus and Neptune. It is at least 6 times heavier than Earth and completes a revolution around the host star after 5.2 years, according to research published in the journal Science Advances on January 15.

Graphics simulating the planetary system Proxima Centauri.(Photo: CNN).

The discovery was made by an international team of astronomers, led by postdoctoral researcher Mario Damasso from the Italian National Institute of Astrophysics. Proxima c is the second planet to be found orbiting the red dwarf Proxima Centauri, after Proxima b was discovered in August 2016, turning it into the planet closest to the Sun.

Proxima c was discovered by the radial velocity method based on gravity and the Doppler effect. Accordingly, a star will not completely stand still but move in a small circle due to the gravity of the planets orbiting it. This motion changes the wavelength of the light and the color of the star. If the changes occur periodically, it indicates that a planet is orbiting the star.

The team observed Proxima Centauri's light-cycle changes and determined it was not related to Proxima b's motion, the planet was significantly smaller than Proxima c when only larger than Earth 1, 3 times and spinning around the host star every 11.2 days.

While Proxima b is in a habitable zone (liquid water can exist on the surface), Proxima c is unable to survive life because it is too far from the host star. The planet's surface may be frozen or covered by stifling hydrogen-helium atmosphere. However, due to its proximity to Earth, Proxima c offers a good opportunity to study a new planetary system.

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