A team of astronomers is suggesting that the distant planet known as Kepler-62f could be habitable. Located approximately 1,200 light-years away from Earth in the direction of the Lyra constellation, the unique planet is 40 percent larger than Earth and within a planetary range that means it is likely rock and may possess oceans.
The planetary system containing Kepler-62f was discovered through NASA's Kepler mission in 2013, which identified the planet as the outermost of five that are orbiting a star. However, the team did not obtain any information about Kepler-62f's composition, atmosphere or orbit until now.
In order to obtain this information, the current team brainstormed possible scenarios that could explain the atmosphere and shape of the planet's orbit.
"We found there are multiple atmospheric compositions that allow it to be warm enough to have surface liquid water," said Aomawa Shields of the University of California, Los Angeles and lead author of the study. "This makes it a strong candidate for a habitable planet."
Using computer simulations, the team determined numerous possible scenarios for Kepler-62f, including possessing an atmosphere that ranges from as thick to 12 times thicker than our own, various atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations and numerous orbital path configurations. Each of these scenarios suggested habitability, although for varying amounts of atmospheric carbon dioxide.
Shields suggests that in order for the planet to remain habitable throughout the entire year, it would require an atmosphere composed entirely of carbon dioxide. Furthermore, its thickness would be three to five times great than Earth's. Such a high concentration of carbon dioxide would be possible due to the planet's distance from its star.
"But if it doesn't have a mechanism to generate lots of carbon dioxide in its atmosphere to keep temperatures warm, and all it had was an Earth-like amount of carbon dioxide, certain orbital configurations could allow Kepler-62f's surface temperatures to temporarily get above freezing during a portion of its year," Shields said. "And this might help melt ice sheets formed at other times in the planet's orbit."
Although life on exoplanets is still an unanswered question, Shields is confident that there is life elsewhere in the universe and hopes that her research will bring us closer to finding it.
The findings were published in the May 13 issue of the journal Astrobiology.
