Scientists are getting prepared to improve our knowledge about the seven Earth-sized planets detected last week, the supersolid state of matter was first achieved – twice, and DNA as a hard driver.
This week in science is a review of the most interesting scientific news of the week.
Follow up from last week
Following last week’s confirmation of the existence of at least seven Earth-sized planets orbiting the dwarf star TRAPPIST-1 , scientists are now getting ready to further our knowledge about them. Three of those planets are inside the habitable zone, which means their distance to the star they are orbiting is appropriate to accommodate life, but many other questions still need answers.
Among those questions, the composition of those planet’s atmospheres is of critical importance to determine if life can thrive there. To answer this question, scientists can use a method called spectroscopy, which analyzes light by separating it into distinct wavelengths. Because each chemical component has a unique wavelength signature, it is possible to determine the components of those planets’ atmospheres by analyzing the light emitted by them.
To do so, scientists will use the James Webb Space Telescope, under development by NASA and ESA (European Space Agency) to substitute NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. The new telescope is capable of capturing light in the same wavelength range as Hubble does plus infrared. As stated by Hannah Wakeford, postdoctoral fellow at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland:
Also, because ozone and methane can be created by biological processes, scientists will be able to use them as a possible indicator of life.
