Astronomers have discovered an Earth-size exoplanet orbiting a nearby red dwarf star located around 55 light-years from Earth.
Designated SPECULOOS-3 b, the planet is a rocky world that completes an orbit every 17 hours, indicating it is tidally locked to its star like the Moon is to Earth.
The planet is too close to its star, receiving radiation that heats it to Venus-like temperatures, evaporating any atmosphere it may have had in the past. It is now an airless bare rock.
Being tidally locked and scorched, the planet is uninhabitable for life as we know it. However, astronomers hope to study its geology using the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope to learn if it shows evidence of past volcanic activity.
Discovering similar rocky planets around red dwarf stars could provide insight into how they form and conditions for potential habitability despite being close to their host stars.
At around 55 light-years away, SPECULOOS-3 b offers one of the best opportunities yet to study the surface geology of an exoplanet outside our solar system.
Source: Live Science
