The Proxima Centauri system, just 25 light-years from Earth, may host a promising candidate for extraterrestrial life, according to a recent study. Researchers have redefined the mass and composition of GJ 3378b, a super Earth that sees itself in the habitable zone of its red dwarf star, making it top of astronomical research focus targeting earthlike planets.
The exoplanet, spotted in 2024, orbits so close to its star, 10 times closer than the Earth around the Sun, that it is closer than the closest possible spare of Venus to Earth. However, since it is a red dwarf, which produces approximately 90 per cent less energy than our Sun, the GJ 3378b planet can receive just enough energy for liquid water to exist on its surface.
Another claim said that GJ 3378b is about 2.3 times larger than Earth. The change of scale was made using the technique called Habitable-zone Planet Finder, which follows the movement of stars caused by gravitational attraction from planets. The method considered proves that the planet is solid probably with an atmosphere as on Earth doing indeed, unlike what has been believed earlier when it was thought that it is a lean version of a mini gas giant whose atmosphere would be too heavy for life to exist.
“This is interesting,” said Paul Robertson, lead author of the study, and an astronomer at University of California, Irvine, as far as at 25 light-years the distance does look large but in the scope of the 100 000 light-years of the Milky Way, it is in the next door of our solar system.
Although no signs of atmosphere or liquid water have been detected on GJ 3378b yet, its position very close to the Earth facilitates observation, and as such, images of GJ 3378b are likely to be studied with extreme interest to see whether life-supporting exoplanets actually do exist.
