Astronomy/space facts

Information: TRAPPIST-1 and 7 Earth-sized planets

TRAPPIST-1 Is a red dwarf star, which sits in the constellation of Aquarius and is barely the size of Jupiter. It was thought a year ago that it had three planets orbiting it. This initial discovery caused scientists to keep a close eye on the star, trying to find any evidence of life. But now a study published in the science journal Nature has exposed a wealth of worlds which are generally thought of as being rare. NASA has just made the an announcement saying: Seven Earth-sized exoplanets around the one star. All are thought to be mostly made up of rock and could potentially support liquid water on their surfaces.

Three are too close to the star, possible to still carry water due to the star being a red dwarf (which are the coolest stars if the universe) and not being able to give enough energy. One (the seventh) may be an ice world. But three sit comfortably in the "Habitable-zone" (orbits neither too hot nor too cold.)

It may sustain life as we know and hope. But scientists believe it would be nothing we've ever seen before.

Scientists and researchers are now crowded with hope. Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington, said: “The discovery gives us a hint that finding a second Earth is not just a matter of if, but when. Are we alone out there, we are making a leap forward to answering this question.” The takeaway from all this is, “we’ve made a crucial step toward finding if there is life out there,” said the University of Cambridge’s Amaury Triaud, one of the researchers.
The potential for more Earth-size planets in our Milky Way galaxy is mind-boggling. Scientists made the discovery using the Spitzer space telescope. Following the announcement, NASA tweeted: “Finding life elsewhere is one of three overarching goals for @NASA science. We are in the middle of a ‘gold-rush’ of this research right now.”