Astronomers Discover Earth-like Planet in Solar System’s Backyard
Astronomers have made an exciting discovery, finding an Earth-like planet just 73 light-years away from Earth. The planet, named HD 63433d, is similar in size to Earth and is considered to be a young terrestrial planet. The discovery was made by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, led by Melinda Soares-Furtado, a researcher at NASA.
HD 63433d is the closest and smallest of three planets orbiting its parent star, HD 63433. With an orbit period of only 4.2 days, the planet is extremely close to its parent star, making it likely that it is gravitationally locked, with one side always facing the star and the other side in darkness.
The parent star, HD 63433, is similar in size to the Sun but is much younger, only about 400 million years old. Researchers believe that studying HD 63433d could provide valuable insights into the early formation and development of planetary systems.
The discovery of HD 63433d was made using data from NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite as part of the THYME planet hunting project. Researchers were initially studying two other planets orbiting HD 63433 when they discovered the Earth-like planet.
The unique position of HD 63433d, along with its lively and young parent star, makes it an ideal candidate for further study. Its proximity to Earth also presents opportunities for astronomers to develop new methods to study gases escaping from the planet’s interior or measure its magnetic field.
The research results have been published in the Astronomical Journal, marking a significant step in the ongoing exploration of distant planets and the formation of planetary systems in our universe.