Scientists have detected an atmosphere on the exoplanet LHS 1140 b, located 40 light-years away and discovered in 2017, informs the EFE press agency on Thursday.
The discovery, made by a large group of researchers from prestigious universities in the United States and presented Thursday in the scientific journal Science, provides the strongest evidence to date of the existence of worlds with a temperature and composition similar to those of Earth, capable of hosting life beyond the solar system.
Astronomers have previously detected atmospheres on exoplanets similar to that of Uranus or Neptune, but never similar to that of Earth.
The exoplanet LHS 1140 b has a mass about 5.6 times that of Earth and a radius about 1.7 times greater. It orbits an older red dwarf star in just 24.7 days, writes Agerpres.
Its characteristics correspond to those of a rocky world, with a composition similar to that of the Earth, from which it receives 42% of the stellar radiation.
This allowed scientists to conclude that its temperature is suitable for the existence of liquid water, although it is not yet known whether planets of this size have similar surfaces to that of Earth.
“What we believe, and what the new data seems to confirm, is that LHS 1140 b is a planet halfway between an oceanic planet (completely covered by water, with oceans hundreds of kilometers deep) and a hydrogen-dominated ice giant similar to Uranus and Neptune,” explained Jose Antonio Caballero, expert at the Spanish Astrobiology Center (CAB CSIC), in an interview with the EFE agency.
The researchers detected evidence of helium leakage from the atmosphere of LHS 1140 b in 2024 using the powerful spectrograph of the Magellan Clay Telescope at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile.
“The helium was clear evidence of an atmosphere on an exoplanet in the habitable zone. It was absolutely thrilling to observe the transit spectra and gradually realize the implications of what we were observing.”said Shreyas Vissapragada of the Carnegie Observatory in California, USA.
According to the researchers, the planet has an upper atmosphere dominated by helium and poor in hydrogen, other elements, such as water, remaining captive at lower altitudes, closer to the surface.
They also observed another planet in the same system, LHS 1140 c, which is smaller and subject to more intense radiation. However, in her case the researchers did not identify indications of the existence of an atmosphere.
“Finally! It was also time to detect signs of the presence of an atmosphere on an Earth-like planet. The truth is that LHS 1140 b had every chance to be the first, but astronomers had already tried many times before, without success,” emphasized Caballero, who expressed confidence that such discoveries will follow. “This is the first detection, but many more will follow”he stated.
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