Arabella was recently recognised with a gold medal at the first edition of the Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Environmental Awards
uae7 hours ago
Talk about an Earth-shattering discovery.
Scientists have spotted seven Earth-size planets around a nearby star, some or all of which could harbou water and possibly life. That's the biggest cluster of planets like this yet to be found.
Here's a quick look:
AGE OF AQUARIUS
This star system is less than 40 light-years from Earth, or 235 trillion miles away, in the constellation Aquarius. At the hub is a small, faint star known as Trappist-1. Seven planets circle Trappist-1, with orbits ranging from 1 ½ to 20 days. If Trappist-1 were our sun, all these planets would fit inside the orbit of Mercury. That's how close they are to their star and why their orbits are so short. The planets have no real names. They're only known by letters, "b" through "h." The letter "A" refers to the star itself.
GOLDILOCKS ZONE
Three of the planets are smack dab in the so-called habitable zone, also known as the Goldilocks zone, where conditions are just right for water and life to flourish - not too much and not too little stellar energy. The four other planets are tantalizingly close to the Goldilocks zone- so close that they, too, could harbor water and potentially life. But just because a planet is in this sweet spot, doesn't mean life exists or ever did. If aliens were observing our solar system from the Trappist-1 network, they might be saying, "Hey, there are three habitable planets there, Venus, Earth and Mars," said Sara Seager, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology astrophysicist who did not take part in the study. The point is, "let's wait and see what's out there," she cautioned.
Around a nearby, cold, small star we found 7 rocky Earth-size planets, all of which could have liquid water - key to life as we know it. pic.twitter.com/C2JWjDfBdKHOW'S THE VIEW?
- NASA (@NASA) February 22, 2017
Arabella was recently recognised with a gold medal at the first edition of the Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Environmental Awards
uae7 hours ago
Post the Covid pandemic, the Emirates has emerged as one of the most popular spots for destination weddings
uae7 hours ago
It bears the name 'Dubai' in Arabic and dates back to the 1960s
uae7 hours ago
The quake occurred at 3.03am local time
uae7 hours ago
Debutant and |Dubai amateur Oscar Craig makes the cut on a tough day dominated by warm winds
sports12 hours ago
In a packed leaderboard the tied second place was decided on a card countback with the Emirates Golf Federation 2 Team prevailing
golf12 hours ago
Chief organiser Tony Estanguet says the goal is to organise a 'spectacular but also more responsible Games which will contribute towards a more inclusive society'
sports13 hours ago
Hag will hopeful Luke Shaw, Anthony Martial and Lisandro Martinez will return before the season's end
sports13 hours ago