To solve the mystery of alien life, a team of astronomers has discovered a new method to measure gravity at the surface of distant stars to spot alien life. They revealed that their new process could determine whether distant stars with planets orbiting them can harbour life.
The astronomers believe that calculating the surface gravity of a star is essentially measuring how much the body would weigh on that star. Also, if the celestial body had a rigid surface on which the body could be placed, then its weight would vary from star to star.
Moreover, the new study enables us to calculate surface gravity with an accuracy of about four percent, for stars too distant and too faint to apply current techniques. As it totally depends on the planet’s mass and its radius, as we measure our weight on Earth with our mass, Earth’s mass and its radius. This technique will enable astronomers to better gauge the masses and sizes of distant stars.
“If you don’t know the star, you don’t know the planet. The size of an exoplanet is measured relative to the size of its parent star,” said study co-author and professor Jaymie Matthews from the University of British Columbia.
He further explained that if you find a planet around a star that you think is Sun-like but is actually a giant, you may have fooled yourself into thinking you’ve found a habitable Earth-sized world. “Our technique can tell you how big and bright is the star, and if a planet around it is the right size and temperature to have water oceans, and maybe life,” Matthews added.
To read more, click here.