Evidence of another planet orbiting Proxima Centauri

A team of researchers studying the closest star to our solar system, Proxima Centauri, has discovered the possible evidence of a second planet in its system. Members of the team, Fabio Del Sordo of the University of Crete, and Mario Damasso of the Turin Observatory, presented their findings at this year's Breakthrough Talk conference, which is It is held at the University of California, on the Berkeley campus.

Proxima Centauri, a red dwarf, was first observed by Robert Innes in 1915. It is located about 4.2 light-years away, making it the closest star to our solar system . Three years ago, a team from the European Southern Observatory discovered a planet orbiting the star, which was soon baptized Proxima Centauri b. In this new effort, the researchers indicated that they had found evidence suggesting the possible existence of another planet orbiting Proxima Centauri.

Proxima Centauri b has been identified by the slight flicker of its host star. Del Sordo and Damasso reported that they were studying data received by HARPS, a telescope from the European Southern Observatory, in Chile. They further reported that data covering the last 17 years revealed similar signs of the wobbling star, suggesting another planet. The two men then suggested that if their discoveries materialized, they thought that the exoplanet would have a mass about six times greater than Earth's, which would put it in the category of a super-terrestrial planet. – and gravitate about 1.5 AU from its star. It would also take the planet about five years to orbit its star. They note that such a long distance from a cooling star would likely mean very cold temperatures on the exoplanet, possibly reaching -234 ° C.

The researchers also indicated that they were confident that they had found a new exoplanet, but that they remained cautious. The team drafted a document setting out their observations, which has been submitted for publication but has not yet been peer reviewed. It is also possible that the space observatory in orbie around Gaia provide confirmation of the planet, which should allow to provide more evidence of an exoplanet, if it is actually present.

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