All Questions
Tagged with astrobiology exoplanet
11
questions
12
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Are there plans to detect life on Earth from the outer solar system?
This has been kicking around in my head for a while. We've been detecting planets for decades by observing regular dips in starlight from many light years away as a planet transits its host star. I've ...
- 226
2
votes
1
answer
64
views
Do M dwarf stars emit the wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum necessary for photosynthesis?
I read a lot of press as of late about earth size planets around the habitable zone of M dwarf stars. I am not an astronomer but I assume this means that the distance will allow liquid water to exist.
...
- 1,201
2
votes
0
answers
33
views
Infrared ozone line detection
I was recently reading Jack R. Woods' response on this forum: Could the James Webb Space Telescope detect biosignals on exoplanets?
In an ideal situation (say looking at absorption lines of a
super-...
- 151
2
votes
2
answers
196
views
What are opinions of most planetary scientists on this study (link below), were there already some complex reviews in scientific journals?
I remember this two year old article from Universe Today about this study, "Stepwise Earth oxygenation is an inherent property of global biogeochemical cycling", by Lewis J. Alcott, Benjamin ...
- 121
4
votes
1
answer
106
views
Eccentricity of Exoplanets
The field of astrobiology specifically discovering other planets that revolve around the sun-like star (also known as Exoplanets) has risen since 1990, but certain orbits of exoplanets are observed to ...
- 311
2
votes
1
answer
48
views
Can concentration of gas in exoplanet atmosphere be found out from wavelength and absorbing radius from spectral data?
I was working on exoplanet spectral data from which I need to infer the concentration of gases. However, the exoplanet spectroscopy data contains only absorption wavelength and absorption radius. Is ...
16
votes
7
answers
4k
views
Why there are no terrestrial planets with a subsurface ocean?
Subsurface oceans in satellites are pretty common: Europa, Enceladus, Ganymede, Callisto, maybe Pluto... This is due to tidal heating of their host planet, Jupiter and Saturn, which heats up the inner ...
- 1,860
13
votes
1
answer
1k
views
How is an exoplanet characterised as "Earth-Like"?
Which features or characteristics are taken into account to characterize an exoplanet as "Earth-Like"?
- 133
2
votes
1
answer
208
views
Low mass cut-off for the Dharma Planet Survey's detection of habitable planets around 40 Eridani A?
News of the discovery of a potentially habitable planet around the star 40 Eridani A (about 16 light-years away) is interesting for reasons including a 1991 letter described below in Sky & ...
- 30.7k
1
vote
2
answers
206
views
Which elements are an indication of habitable exoplanets?
Using spectroscopy the chemical composition of exoplanets atmosphere is determined. As a scientist, what spectral lines would you look for?
Which elements are relevant in pursue of a second earth?
- 113
11
votes
1
answer
441
views
Could the James Webb Space Telescope detect biosignals on exoplanets?
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) which is slated to launch in 2018 will bring us a better view of exoplanets, but will it be sufficient to detect signs of life on at least some of those worlds?
...
- 6,300