'Super Earth': Scientists find habitable planet near our Solar System

In an exciting astronomical breakthrough, scientists from various space agencies and research institutions astronomy announced the discovery of a “super Earth”, an exoplanet located outside our Solar System, which could be a candidate for harboring life.

The intriguing planet named TOI-733b has aroused great interest among researchers, due to its unique characteristics and the possibility of containing water. Learn more below!

New Earth?

Located about 245 light-years away from Earth, TOI-733b orbits a G-type star similar to our Sun. The exoplanet was identified this year thanks to data collected by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), a crucial tool for the search for planets outside our own. Solar system.

(Image: Nazarii_Neshcherenskyi/Shutterstock/playback)

With a radius 1.21 times that of the Earth and a mass approximately 5.72 times greater, TOI-733b has a density of 3.54 g/cm³. This indicates that its composition is predominantly rocky and metallic.

Its orbit takes it to a distance of 9.4 million kilometers from the host star, which is equivalent to 0.0618 astronomical units (AU). This results in a fast orbital period of just 4.9 days. This extreme proximity to its star results in surface temperatures ranging between 200 and 400 degrees Celsius.

The most exciting element of the discovery is the indication of the presence of water in TOI-733b. However, astronomers still cannot say with certainty whether this water exists in a liquid state or in some other form of aggregation.

The possibility of liquid water is fundamental to consider the habitability of an exoplanet, as it is a primordial condition for life as we know it.

“TOI-733b is an extremely interesting exoplanet, notable for being one of the few known oceanic Super Earths. Their discovery opens up exciting new prospects for the search for signs of life beyond Earth,” said the scientists responsible for analyzing the TESS data.

The super-Earth's relatively high density suggests the possibility of an atmosphere, which has triggered speculation about the planet's ability to protect its surface from solar radiation harmful. This is crucial for sustaining any form of life that might exist there.

While there are still many mysteries to unravel about TOI-733b, its discovery represents a leap forward significant in the search for habitable exoplanets and expands our understanding of the universe and the conditions conducive to life.

With increasingly advanced technologies and space missions dedicated to the exploration of these distant worlds, scientists are closer than ever to answering the intriguing question: are we alone in the world? cosmos?