With a radio telescope in Drenthe, astronomers have observed radio waves caused by how a “nearby” star interacts with its planet. This is reported by the Dutch Institute of Radio Astronomy (Astron) Monday. By searching for signals like this, the researchers hope to find planets that orbit around other stars.
The nearby star in question is a so-called red dwarf star, which has been given the name GJ1151. The planet is in the livable zone of GJ1151.
However, red dwarf stars are smaller and cooler than our sun, so a planet must be considerably closer to the star to enter this zone.
Because of the short distance to the star, the planet has more to do with the magnetic fields of the star, which are more intense with a red dwarf than, for example, our sun.
The strong magnetic force that pulls the planet causes warming and can affect the atmosphere. The Dutch radio telescope has been able to measure the radio waves that are released.
First evidence for thirty-year-old theory
The existence of these waves was conceived 30 years ago, but now it is proven for the first time. The researchers hope with this new ‘research technique’ to find out in what circumstances exoplanets exist alongside their star.
The research has appeared in the scientific journal Nature.
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