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Over 20 light-years away, Earth-like planets?. Credit: ESO. Location R.A.: 15h19m26s Dec: -07d43’20”. Image ca. 20 arc minutes wide. Credit: DSS. Credit: ESO. Credit: ESO. Orbits. b. Earth masses: 15.65 Distance: 0.04AU Period: 5.37 d Eccentricity: 0. System Data.
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Over 20 light-years away, Earth-like planets? Credit: ESO
Location R.A.: 15h19m26s Dec: -07d43’20”
b Earth masses: 15.65 Distance: 0.04AU Period: 5.37 d Eccentricity: 0 System Data Star cataloged as Gliese 581 Constellation: Libra Spectrum: M3 Age vs Sun: nearly 2x Distance: 20.4 ly Magnitude: 10.6 mv Sun masses: 0.31 Sun radii: 0.38 Sun luminosity: 0.00202 Temperature: 3,250oK Sun magnitude: 3.81 mv c Earth masses: 5.36 Distance: 0.07AU Period: 12.93 d Eccentricity: 0.17 d Earth masses: 7.09 Distance: 0.22AU Period: 66.8 d Eccentricity: 0.38 e Earth masses: 1.94 Distance: 0.03AU Period: 3.15 d Eccentricity: 0 1AU = 149.598 mio km (93.5 mio miles)
Is Life out there on ‘c’ and ‘d’? • Pros: • Super-Earth-class size • Situated in Gliese 581’s HZ • Existence of liquid water possible • Grainy or ocean covered surface • Cons: • Radiation impact from the star • Probably tidally locked Credit: ESO Anyway: The system is “only” 20.4 light-years away and therefore a travel target for the future by when our successors will know more about this planetary system, which may count more than the four planets known to date. Suppose it would be possible to travel near the speed of light, the journey would take about 6.1 years one-way at 1g acceleration.
Further information: The Crowded Universe by Alan Boss on Fora TV http://fora.tv/2009/03/13/Alan_Boss_The_Crowded_Universe The Extrasolar Planet Encyclopaedia http://exoplanet.eu Planetquest http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov The Kepler Mission http://kepler.nasa.gov