Astronomers used the James Webb Space Telescope, the world’s most powerful space observatory; To explore the solar system “TRAPPIST-1”, what did they find there?
A solar system similar to our own
This solar system, which was observed by the James Webb Telescope, is located about 40 light-years away from us, and contains seven huge rocky planets the size of Earth.
This system contains a red star called “TRAPPIST-1,” which is much smaller than the Sun but more volatile than it.
This red dwarf star releases powerful bursts of energy, called solar flares, in this distant solar system several times a day.
Similar solar flares from our own system’s Sun occur about once a month.
In new research to be published in The Astrophysical Journal, researchers used the James Webb Telescope to record four of these solar flares.
“If we want to know more about exoplanets, it’s really important that we understand their stars,” Ward Howard, lead author of the research and a professor in the Department of Astrophysics and Planetary Sciences at CU Boulder, said in a statement.
Howard added: “The four solar flares occurred within just 27 hours.”
He continued: “This great energy could have obscured or changed the light observed by the Webb telescope from the TRAPPIST planets, but the telescope carries a spectrometer that detects the spectrum of colors resulting from the composition of the planet’s atmosphere, and tells us the presence of water, carbon dioxide, and other materials.”
“There are only a few star systems similar to our solar system, and we have discovered that 3 of the seven TRAPPIST planets are in the habitable zone, meaning they are in conditions that enable them to carry water on their surfaces,” Howard noted.
Powerful capabilities of the James Webb Telescope
The James Webb Telescope, which is a scientific collaboration between NASA, the European Space Agency, and the Canadian Space Agency, is designed to explore places beyond the universe, and look more deeply at the interesting planets in our galaxy and our solar system.
These tasks are carried out through the giant James Webb Mirror, which captures light over a wide area, two and a half times greater than the Hubble Telescope.
Capturing more light allows the James Webb Telescope to see more distant objects.
Unlike Hubble, which only sees light visible to us, James Webb works primarily in infrared, allowing us to see more detail in space.
Looking at distant exoplanets, the James Webb Telescope carries specialized equipment called spectrometers, which can detect molecules such as water, carbon dioxide and methane present in the atmospheres of distant exoplanets.
