The Search for Super Habitable Planets: Beyond Our Solar System

Earth has been known to be the most suitable planet for life, but scientists have discovered several other worlds that could be even better for life. These planets are known as super habitable planets and are much better equipped to sustain life than Earth.

Some of these planets are so far away that it’s impossible to visit them anytime soon. However, scientists are keeping their eyes peeled for planets that could potentially sustain life. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the top contenders for super habitable planets, and what makes them unique.

KOI-5715.01:

KOI-5715.01 is one of the top contenders for super habitable planets and is located 3,000 light years away from our solar system. This planet exists in the Goldilocks zone of its star, which means that the conditions wouldn’t be too hot or too cold for liquid water, a key life-supporting ingredient, to exist on its surface.

The planet is also a part of a planetary system that is estimated to be 5.5 billion years old, which is around 1 billion years older than our own solar system. This increases the chances of finding life on this planet.

The planet also fits the size requirements, with a mass up to 1.5 times that of Earth and about 10% larger. This size difference would help the planet retain heat, and with an average temperature of about 5 degrees Celsius higher than Earth, the planet could have even richer biodiversity.

However, studies indicate that this planet is actually colder than Earth, and the hope for a strong greenhouse effect that could raise temperatures to the desired level still exists.

Kepler-69C:

Another top contender for super habitable planets is Kepler-69C, which is located approximately 2700 light years away. This super-earth could be around 7 billion years old, which puts it perfectly in the estimated 5 to 8 billion year old age range for super-habitable planets.

This range is based on the 3.5 billion years it took for complex life to appear on Earth, so the best chance for finding life could be on a planet a little older than us. Kepler-69C is a little too big to be considered super habitable, with a mass almost four times that of Earth.

A rocky planet this big could have a single colossal continent with huge deserts in its center. The coastline, washed by Kepler’s ocean, could be a suitable place for life.

Kepler 1126B:

Another super-earth on the list is Kepler 1126B, located approximately 2073 light years away. This planet orbits a yellow dwarf star, much like our own, and belongs to a system that is 7 and a half billion years old. Kepler 1126B is 2.5 times closer to its star than Earth is to the Sun, but this is not a concern because the star it orbits is cooler than ours. This means that the habitable zone would exist in a range much closer in proximity to the star.

Speculoos 2C:

Speculoos 2C is another top contender for super habitable planets and is located only 106 light years away. Although this planet is closer than the other candidates, it would still take over 200,000 years to travel to this super-earth, even at the speed of NASA’s Parker Solar Probe, the fastest probe ever launched.

Speculoos 2C is about 40% larger than Earth and has the potential to be a rocky planet, just like ours. The planet exists in a habitable zone, but its red dwarf star is still very small, only about 15% the size of our Sun. This means that the planet orbits around its star at a very close distance, which could mean that Speculoos 2C is tidally locked to its star.

Tidally locked means that the same side of the planet always faces its star, just like how the moon always shows one face to the Earth. This occurs because the gravitational pull from the star creates tidal forces on the planet, which causes the planet to synchronize its rotation with its orbit around the star. This can lead to a situation where one side of the planet is constantly facing the star, while the other side is in permanent darkness.

Due to the close proximity to its star, Speculoos 2C is likely to be extremely hot on its star-facing side and much colder on its dark side. The heat from the star can also lead to intense atmospheric changes, with high levels of atmospheric escape and intense winds that circulate heat around the planet.

Speculoos 2C is not the only exoplanet that has been discovered in recent years that has the potential to support life. There are many other exoplanets that have been discovered with similar conditions, including Proxima b, TRAPPIST-1, and Kepler-186f.

These exoplanets offer a glimpse into the diversity of planetary systems in our universe and the many different ways in which life could potentially exist on other worlds.