Found the second planet of Proxima Centauri, the star closest to the sun

Astronomers have recently discovered a sign of the existence of a second exoplanet in orbit around the star closest to our sun: Proxima Centauri, according to the paper. Universe Today report.

The planet, called Proxima c, is being closely monitored by scientists. Its mass is only half that of Neptune, and orbits its host star (Proxima Centauri) at a distance greater than 1.5 times the distance between Earth and the sun. With this feature, astronomers believe that the temperature on Proxima c will not be high, even extremely cold. If there is no atmosphere to keep warm, the surface temperature of Proxima c can fall below -200 ° C (-328 ° F).

The first evidence of the existence of Proxima c appeared last year, when astronomers from the University of Turin, Italy and the University of Crete, Greece, used a tool called High Accuracy Radial velocity. Planet Searcher (HARPS) to observe the Proxima Centauri system, and find traces of a planet 'swaying' around the orbit of Proxima Centauri due to the impact of this star's gravity. At that time, however, scientists were still not sure what they were observing.

Found the second planet of Proxima Centauri, the star closest to the sun Picture 1

To confirm the presence of this new planet with greater precision, a team of researchers from around the world worked together, analyzing the light emitted from Proxima Centauri, observing the Spectra spectrum. and convert light into different wavelengths. With this technique, researchers can dig a closer look at the origin of the star, and find small movements of the wobble to confirm that it is an impact from the gravitational force of the host star. From the newly obtained data combined with known knowledge, the team was able to identify evidence that the existence of a second planet orbiting Proxima Centauri.

Proxima Centauri does not belong to the solar system, but is located very close to our sun, only approximately 4.2 light-years away. In August 2016, astronomers announced the discovery of Proxima b, a planet about the size of Earth orbiting Proxima Centauri at a distance of 0.05 AU (7.5 million km) and a fund cycle. is approximately equal to 11.2 Earth days. With the above findings, Proxima c will be the second planet of Proxima Centauri.