Scientists have made a groundbreaking discovery of a planet orbiting the closest single star to our Sun. Using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT), astronomers have been able to observe the exoplanet, named Barnard b, orbiting Barnard’s star.
Barnard b is reported to have at least half the mass of Venus, with a year on the planet lasting slightly more than three Earth days. The findings also suggest the existence of three more exoplanet candidates in various orbits around the star, located six light-years away from Earth. This makes Barnard’s star the second-closest stellar system to us, after Alpha Centauri’s three-star group.
For researchers, Barnard’s star has always been a primary target in the quest for Earth-like exoplanets. The recent discovery of Barnard b, confirmed by lead author Jonay Gonzalez Hernandez from the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias in Spain, marks a significant milestone in this pursuit.
In their study published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics, the researchers focused on identifying signals from potential exoplanets within the habitable or temperate zone of Barnard’s star—where conditions could support liquid water on a planet’s surface. Unfortunately, Barnard b orbits too close to its host star to maintain liquid water due to its high surface temperature of around 125°C.
The observations leading to this discovery were conducted over the past five years with ESO’s VLT located at Paranal Observatory in Chile. Mr Gonzalez Hernandez emphasised the significance of this finding, stating that despite the planet’s relatively low mass, it orbits too close to the star to be within the habitable zone.
The researchers’ confidence in eventually discovering a planet around Barnard’s star has been unwavering, ultimately paying off with the identification of Barnard b. This advancement in exoplanet research opens up new avenues for understanding planetary systems beyond our own solar system and the potential for habitable worlds in distant corners of the universe.