red dwarf flaring Archives

March 22, 2024March 22, 2024 by Evan Gough

Finding Atmospheres on Red Dwarf Planets Will Take Hundreds of Hours of Webb Time

This illustration shows what exoplanet K2-18 b could look like based on science data. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope examined the exoplanet and revealed the presence of carbon-bearing molecules. The abundance of methane and carbon dioxide, and shortage of ammonia, support the hypothesis that there may be a water ocean underneath a hydrogen-rich atmosphere in K2-18 b. But more extensive observations with the JWST are needed to understand its atmosphere with greater confidence. Image Credit: By Illustration: NASA, ESA, CSA, Joseph Olmsted (STScI)Science: Nikku Madhusudhan (IoA)

The JWST is enormously powerful. One of the reasons it was launched is to examine exoplanet atmospheres to determine their chemistry, something only a powerful telescope can do. But even the JWST needs time to wield that power effectively, especially when it comes to one of exoplanet science’s most important targets: rocky worlds orbiting red dwarfs.

March 15, 2024March 15, 2024 by Evan Gough

Could Earth Life Survive on a Red Dwarf Planet?

This artist's illustration shows planets orbiting a red dwarf star. Many red dwarfs have planets in their habitable zones, but red dwarf flaring might mean those zones aren't habitable at all. New research explores the idea. Image Credit: NASA

Even though exoplanet science has advanced significantly in the last decade or two, we’re still in an unfortunate situation. Scientists can only make educated guesses about which exoplanets may be habitable. Even the closest exoplanet is four light-years away, and though four is a small integer, the distance is enormous.

That doesn’t stop scientists from trying to piece things together, though.

October 12, 2023October 12, 2023 by Matt Williams

TRAPPIST-1 Has Flares. What Does This Mean for its Planets?

Most exoplanets orbit red dwarf stars because they're the most plentiful stars. This is an artist's illustration of what the TRAPPIST-1 system might look like from a vantage point near planet TRAPPIST-1f (at right). Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech

The TRAPPIST-1 system continues to fascinate astronomers, astrobiologists, and exoplanet hunters alike. In 2017, NASA announced that this red dwarf star (located 39 light-years away) was orbited by no less than seven rocky planets – three of which were within the star’s habitable zone (HZ). Since then, scientists have attempted to learn more about this system of planets to determine whether they could support life. Of particular concern is the way TRAPPIST-1 – like all M-type (red dwarf) stars – is prone to flare-ups, which could have a detrimental effect on planetary atmospheres.

Using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), an international team of astrophysicists led by the University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder) took a closer look at this volatile star. As they describe in their paper (which recently appeared online), the Webb data was used to perform a detailed spectroscopic investigation of four solar flares bursting around TRAPPIST-1. Their findings could help scientists characterize planetary environments around red dwarf stars and measure how flare activity can affect planetary habitability.

March 14, 2023March 14, 2023 by Evan Gough

Even the Calmest Red Dwarfs are Wilder than the Sun

An artist's conception of a violent flare erupting from the red dwarf star Proxima Centauri. Such flares can obliterate atmospheres of nearby planets. Credit: NRAO/S. Dagnello.

There’s something menacing about red dwarfs. Human eyes are accustomed to our benevolent yellow Sun and the warm light it shines on our glorious, life-covered planet. But red dwarfs can seem moody, ill-tempered, and even foreboding.

For long periods of time, they can be calm, but then they can flare violently, flashing a warning to any life that might be gaining a foothold on a nearby planet.