The search for alternative habitations has long been on the minds of scientists. While until now science has focused on finding a planet which would be very much like a twin of the Earth, new research on rocky planets outside our solar system have yielded encouraging and promising results.
Scientists and researchers from the KU Leuven University have been at the helm of this path-breaking initiative. They have administered about 165 climate simulations on these rocky exoplanets which permanently face their 'sun' with one side, reported Phys.org.
Scientists have focused their research on exoplanets that orbit their suns at a close distance so that they are warm enough to keep water in a liquid state. Most of the 'suns' of these exoplanets are relatively cool and small stars known as 'red dwarfs,' according to Science Daily.
This means that these exoplanets have permanent day and night sides. Even with permanent day and night zones, these planets have not shown high temperature ranges. Scientists attribute this to the fact that these exoplanets have efficient 'air conditioning systems' that result in habitable temperature ranges, reports ECN.
These exoplanets have two wind systems. The first is characterized by two weak westward wind jets at high latitudes. The other climate option combines weak superrotation with two high-latitude wind jets, making the rocky exoplanets potentially habitable. This does not interfere with the 'air conditioning system' .
And it is this air conditioning system that has been the focus of study for Dr. Ludmila Carone, Professor Rony Keppens, and Professor Leen Decin from KU Leuven.
"On the basis of 3D models, we examined exoplanets with different rotation periods and sizes. We discovered that these rocky planets have three possible climates, two of which are potentially habitable," Carone explains.
The basis of the study has been the wind systems of these planets. Scientists are hopeful that this study will not only help avoid the premature discarding of potentially habitable planets that display 'un-Earth-like' appearances, but also help further research for habitable environments in the solar system.
