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The planets TOI-4306 and LP 890-9c are closer to their stars than Earth is to the sun. Photo: University of Birmingham
Starting from Metro, on Tuesday (13/9), two planets were discovered by an international research team led by astrophysicist Laetitia Delrez. The first planet was named TOI-4306 while the second planet is called LP 890-9c.
TOI-4306b It was initially identified by NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), a space mission dedicated to searching for exoplanets orbiting nearby stars.
Planet TOI-4306 is very similar to Earth. It is about 30% larger than Earth, capable of completing an orbit around its star in just 2.7 days. Researchers are still exploring the features of TOI-4306b using the SPECULOOS telescope.
The second planet, LP 890-9c, is about 40% larger than Earth but has a longer orbital period of about 8.5 days, placing it in the “habitable zone” around its star.
Although the planet orbits very close to its star, about 10 times shorter than Mercury’s around the Sun, the amount of stellar radiation it receives is still low and allows for the presence of liquid on the planet’s surface.
This is because LP 890-9 has a decent atmosphere and is about 6.5 times smaller than the sun and has a surface temperature that is half that of a star.
Although much closer to its star than Earth is to the Sun, conditions are suitable for life.
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Researchers think planets like these are good candidates for deeper studies of the atmosphere, as well as possible traces of life through large telescopes like NASA’s James Webb.
LP 890-9c itself is the most habitable planet among the terrestrial planets captured by the James Webb telescope.
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