Scientists discover new ‘super-Earth’ planet where you could live to the age of 3,158

By Malavika Pradeep

Published Sep 14, 2022 at 10:08 AM

Reading time: 2 minutes

36071

An international team of scientists, led by Laetitia Delrez, astrophysicist at the University of Liège, Belgium, has announced the discovery of two ‘super-Earth’ type planets that are just 100 light years away from us—one of which is potentially habitable with an average life expectancy of 3,158 years.

As per the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), super-Earths are a unique class of exoplanets that are more massive than our own planet yet lighter than ice giants like Neptune and Uranus. They can be made of gas, rock or a combination of both and are between twice the size of Earth and up to ten times its mass.

As for the two newly-found planets, they circle a “relatively low activity” red dwarf star called TOI-4306. The first planet, LP 890-9b (or TOI-4306b), was initially identified by NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), a space mission dedicated to the search for exoplanets orbiting nearby stars.

LP 890-9b is about 30 per cent larger than Earth with a radius of more than 5,200 miles and circles its sun in just 2.7 days. Now, to put things into perspective, the current average life expectancy on Earth is 73.5 years. This would mean that the average life expectancy on this newly-discovered planet—as noted by LADbible—would be 9,943, given the fact that it records much shorter years than Earth due to its orbiting period.

That being said, it was the discovery of the second planet that really intrigued the team of scientists.

While using their SPECULOOS (Search for habitable Planets EClipsing ULtra-cOOl Stars) telescopes in Chile and Spain to take a closer look at the first planet, the University of Liège researchers stumbled across LP 890-9c (renamed SPECULOOS-2c). About 40 per cent bigger than Earth with a radius of more than 5,400 miles, the second planet has a longer orbital period of around 8.5 days. This statistic essentially places it in the so-called ‘habitable zone’ around its star.

Scientists discover new ‘super-Earth’ planet where you could live to the age of 3,158

“Although this planet orbits very close to its star, at a distance about ten times shorter than that of Mercury around our Sun, the amount of stellar irradiation it receives is still low, and could allow the presence of liquid water on the planet’s surface, provided it has a sufficient atmosphere,” explained co-author Francisco J. Pozuelos in a press release.

“This is because the star LP 890-9 is about 6.5 times smaller than the Sun and has a surface temperature half that of our star. This explains why LP 890-9c, despite being much closer to its star than the Earth is to the Sun, could still have conditions that are suitable for life.”

Now, if you happen to live on this second planet, you could possibly celebrate up to 3,158 birthdays. It’s safe to say that life already sounds like a series of parties on LP 890-9c.

But this ‘immortal’ conversation can’t be discussed without mentioning space billionaire Jeff Bezos’ 2021 headline-grabbing announcement of his anti-ageing venture called Altos Labs that essentially aims to ‘cheat death’ on our home planet itself. Crypto billionaire Brian Armstrong and bioengineer and tech investor Blake Byers have also previously admitted their plans to expand the human lifespan on Earth.

Back to exoplanets, however, CBS News mentioned that the team of researchers is now planning to study the atmosphere of LP 890-9c to determine just how habitable it could prove to be. Based on their findings, it’s also believed that it could be the second most favourable terrestrial planet to sustain human life.

“The discovery of LP 890-9c therefore offers a unique opportunity to better understand and constrain the habitability conditions around the smallest and coolest stars in our solar neighbourhood,” lead researcher Delrez concluded.

Keep On Reading

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Israel’s controversial ban on UNRWA: Examining the legal fallout and humanitarian consequences

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

What’s Dior bags got to do with the Delta plane crash? Unpacking the wildest conspiracy theories about the Toronto flight

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Beyoncé and Jay-Z consider legal action after Kanye West publicly attacks the couple’s children

By Abby Amoakuh

Francesca Farago reveals that influencers are being paid to participate in trend mocking Hailey Bieber

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

We sat down with Justina Miles, the iconic Deaf performer who stole the show during Rihanna’s Super Bowl performance

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

TikTok users suspect there’s a serial killer in New South Wales linked to 67 unsolved murder cases

By Charlie Sawyer

New details emerge about Angelina Jolie’s abuse allegations against Brad Pitt

By Abby Amoakuh

Did The Summer I Turned Pretty star Gavin Casalegno cheat on his ex-girlfriend Larsen Thompson?

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Australian erotic novelist charged with child abuse material offenses after backlash over latest book

By Lucy Skoulding

The US death penalty under Donald Trump: Why executions are on the rise again

By Abby Amoakuh

Iraq legalises child marriage following proposal to lower age of consent to nine

By Julie Huynh

Hockey fan edits are taking over TikTok, and it’s all thanks to Gen Z girlies

By Abby Amoakuh

Sydney Sweeney calls wedding off and consciously uncouples from fiancé Jonathan Davino

By Abby Amoakuh

Americans chose a convicted felon over a woman of colour for president. How did this happen?

By Malavika Pradeep

What is a Labubu? Unboxing the monster plushie capturing hearts, wallets and belt loops

By Abby Amoakuh

TikToker who started the NYC influencers are boring trend fired from her job for the viral video

By Annabel Smith

Is TikTok’s protect your peace trend empowering Gen Z women or causing social isolation?

By Abby Amoakuh

Goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow gives up restrictive diet to be strong instead of thin following backlash

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

What is the mermaid eating parties conspiracy theory, and why are TikTokers now obsessed with it?

By Charlie Sawyer

Conspiracy theorists claim Los Angeles wildfires were started on purpose to make way for SmartLA 2028 agenda