Our curious minds keep on asking whether or not we have companies in other solar systems and galaxies. We have known that Earth is the only planet in the universe to have human beings in it. However, the possibilities are endless. We can never know that mysterious activities and things may happen in the universe. And who knows?
Earth has been in the habitable zone in the solar system. In our solar system, we have known that we have numerous planets. We have only known eight big planets, such as Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. However, we need to know that we have Makemake, Ceres, Eris, Pluto, Haumea, and possibly more others. And yet, Earth is the only one, quite special and unique in the universe, due to its characteristics and features to hold and sustain life. As a result, some will stop thinking that Earth is the only habitable zone in the universe.
However, there have been plenty of habitable planets in the universe. According to research, there have been 40 billion potential habitable zones as recorded in 2013. Space scientists reported that 40 billion Earth-sized planets circumnavigating in the inhabitable zones of Sun-like stars and red dwarfs in the Milky Way. Additionally, 11 billion of these planets will orbit the Sun-like stars. Certainly, all these data reports are from Kepler space mission data.
Aside from Earth as the habitable planet in the habitable zone, other planets are candidates for human beings or any living creatures and organisms to live.
| Object (Planet) | Star |
| Earth | Sun (Sol) |
| Proxima Centauri b | Proxima Centauri |
| Gliese 667 Cc | Gliese 667 C |
| Kepler-442b | Kepler-442 |
| Kepler-452b | Kepler-452 |
| Wolf 1061c | Wolf 1061 |
| Kepler-1229b | Kepler-1229 |
| Kapteyn b | Kapteyn |
| Kepler-62f | Kepler-62 |
| Kepler-186f | Kepler-186 |
| TOI 700 d | Cool M Dwarf Star |
Now, NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) has new studies. Based on TESS, it has revealed its first Earth-size planet in its star’s inhabitable region. The structure and the distances of this Earth-size planet seem perfect for the habitability criteria to have liquid water on the surface. Researchers and space scientists could verify that the habitable planet called TOI 700 d remains the potential environment to hold life.
NASA explores the concept of TOI 700 d to be the only a few Earth-size planets to appear in the universe. Further studies will deliver ideas and information of planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system via NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope.
References
Khan, A. (2013). Milky Way may host billions of Earth-size planets. Retrieved July 23, 2020, from https://www.latimes.com/science/la-sci-earth-like-planets-20131105-story.html
Overbye, D. (2013). Far-Off Planets Like the Earth Dot the Galaxy. Retrieved July 23, 2020, from https://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/05/science/cosmic-census-finds-billions-of-planets-that-could-be-like-earth.html
Kazmierczak, J. (2020).NASA Planet Hunter Finds its 1st Earth-size Habitable-zone World. Retrieved July 23, 2020, from https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2020/nasa-planet-hunter-finds-its-1st-earth-size-habitable-zone-world
