Potentially Habitable Exoplanets

Can humans survive on a planet beyond our Solar System?

An exoplanet can be defined as any planetary body that orbits some star other than our Sun. Vote for an exoplanet you think has the most potential for habitation at the bottom of the page.

Ideal Habitation Conditions

What makes an exoplanet habitable?

The planet's gravity must hold an atmosphere (Earth's atmosphere provides oxygen and keeps the planet warm by trapping carbon dioxide and other gases, so a habitable planet's atmosphere should mirror this function)
The presence of a planetary core serves as a source of geothermal energy, allows cycling of raw materials, and produces a magnetic field around planet to protect it from harmful radiation
Planets must not have a low mass. Low mass means low gravity, which means that the planet would not be able to retain an atmosphere.
Located within a system's "Habitable Zone." Around normal stars, a band of habitability can be drawn. This range of orbits determines where exactly a planet that can contain liquid water (thanks to favorable atmospheric and temperature conditions) might sit in relation to a star. Large hot stars have habitable zones at far greater radii than cool dwarf stars.
Habitable planets must also orbit favorably sized stars. Large, bright stars burn out quickly, meaning that small, dull dwarf stars are most favorable.

Read through a few examples of potentially habitable exoplanets below, and be sure to take the poll, using the criteria above to determine which planet is the most appealing and most likely habitable.

Gliese 667 Cc

Orbits Gliese 667 C, a red dwarf star with a mass 31% that of the sun
Mass is estimated to be 4 to 5 times that of Earth
Surface temperature: 30C (86F)
Revolves around its host star at 11.5 million miles
The orbital period is 28 Earth days

TRAPPIST-1e

TRAPPIST-1 will outlive our sun, so potential replacement for earth
In the habitable zone of the Trappist system
Similar density, mass, and radius to earth

Proxima Centauri b

A planet orbiting Proxima Centauri has been determined to be located in the system’s “Goldilocks” (Hab.) Zone
It has 30% more mass than Earth, and orbits Prox. Cen. once every 11.2 Earth days
Receives more radiation than Earth, which may cause gases and liquids to erode away/escape to space
Proxima Centauri, the star Proxima Centauri b orbits, is the nearest star to the Solar System

Kepler-425b

Orbits a star that is of similar size to earth. The orbital period is 384.8 earth days.
Scientists believe that it is 6 billion years old. Earth is estimated to be 4.5 billion years old.
A similar size to Earth; 1.63 times the size of earth

RETURN TO HOMEPAGE

Sources

"Exoplanets 101." NASA, exoplanets.nasa.gov/the-search-for-life/exoplanets-101/. Accessed 22 May 2018.

"Largest Batch of Earth-size, Habitable Zone Planets." NASA, exoplanets.nasa.gov/trappist1/. Accessed 22 May 2018.

"The Habitability of Proxima Centauri b." ICE, www.ice.csic.es/personal/iribas/Proxima_b/. Accessed 22 May 2018.

"Trappist-1." Trappist-1, www.trappist.one/. Accessed 22 May 2018.

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