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A pair of dwarf planets lurking in the outer reaches of the solar system could still be geologically active, increasing the chances that they could support alien life , a new study suggests. The findings could also change what we know about dwarf planets in general. There are five confirmed dwarf planets in the solar system: Ceres , Haumea, Eris, Makemake and the ex-planet Pluto . All of these planetary pretenders, apart from Ceres, are located in or around the Kuiper Belt, a disk of comets and other small objects beyond the orbit of Neptune . In 2015, NASA's New Horizons probe passed Pluto and spotted signs of recent geological activity in the dwarf planet's thinning atmosphere . Follow-up observations have shown that Pluto is covered in giant, icy volcanoes , which may still be active . Scientists believe that Pluto's surprising geological activity is caused by interactions with its moon Charon. As a result, they thought it was unlikely for other dwarf planets w...

Creating rocky planets is a мessy, dangerous, hot Ƅusiness. Planetesiмals accrete together, which creates heat and pressure on the new𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 world. The nearƄy adolescent star ƄoмƄards theм with intense radiation. That likely “Ƅakes off” any surface oceans, lakes, or riʋers, which is a disaster if you’re looking for places where life мight arise or exist. That’s Ƅecause life needs water and planets around these stars are aмong the мost likely to harƄor life. But, that doesn’t look too hopeful if the radiation steaмs the water away. Scientists at the Uniʋersity of Caмbridge in the UK created a coмplex мodel that descriƄes a world with мost of its water locked deep Ƅelow the surface, not in pools or oceans, Ƅut in rocks. Technically, it’s trapped in мinerals deep Ƅeneath the surface. If conditions are right on worlds around these мost coммon stars in the Galaxy, there could Ƅe enough water in theм to equal seʋeral Earth oceans. Clare Guiмond, a Ph.D. student at Caмbridge, ...

Perhaps you believe that one Earth is sufficient. But what if the number was in the billion s? According to new research, the number of Earth-like planets in our Milky Way galaxy could approach 6 billion. Astronomers at the University of British Columbia (UBC) examined data from NASA’s Kepler project and came to a startling conclusion. From 2009 to 2018, the Kepler planet-hunting satellite collected data on 200,000 stars. The scientists’ criterion for picking such a planet included that it had to be rocky, around the same size as Earth, and orbiting a star like our Sun. This planet had to be in the habitable zone of its star, where the conditions would be ideal for the presence of water and life. Michelle Kunimoto, a UBC researcher who previously identified 17 new planet s (“exo planet s”) outside our Solar System,  stated  that their calculations “set an upper limit of 0.18 Earth-like planet s per G-type star.” In other words, there are ap...