?Can free wandering planets support life
A recent study suggests that there are between 100 and 10,000 wandering planets (or planetos) for every star in the Milky Way. This would mean that approximately one quadrillion wandering planets are traveling through our galaxy.
The universe is a wonderful but mysterious place. The more we explore it, the more it puzzles us. Today we know that our solar system is not the only star system in the galaxy to harbor planets. But a few decades ago, that was not the case. Many astronomers have theorized that other stars must have planets orbiting them. However, at the time, they did not have any evidence to support their theory. To date, NASA has confirmed the existence of 5,235 exoplanets. 9,169 are still awaiting confirmation. And while that may seem like a lot, it's nothing compared to the estimated 200 trillion planets that are believed to exist in the Milky Way galaxy alone. These worlds are said to revolve around a star or star system.
?What are wandering planets
Les planètes errantes (ou planémos) sont des mondes qui voyagent dans la galaxie et qui ne gravitent pas autour d’une étoile. Ces mondes mystérieux et étranges ne se sont pas formés dans l’espace interstellaire. Autrefois, eux aussi étaient en orbite autour de leur étoile hôte. Mais ils ont été expulsés de leur famille cosmique pour une raison gravitationnelle quelconque. Par exemple, les planètes de notre système solaire ont des orbites stables autour de notre étoile dans un avenir prévisible. Mais des perturbations gravitationnelles provenant d’autres mondes, ou d’une étoile qui passe, pourraient déstabiliser l’orbite d’une planète et la faire sortir du système.
?Comment trouver une planète rebelle
Wandering planets (or planetos) are galaxy-traveling worlds that do not orbit a star. These mysterious and strange worlds did not form in interstellar space. They, too, once orbited their host star. But they were kicked out of their cosmic family for some gravitational reason. For example, the planets in our solar system have stable orbits around our star for the foreseeable future. But gravitational disturbances from other worlds, or from a passing star, could destabilize a planet's orbit and knock it out of the system.
?How to find a rebel planet
We can discover a rebellious planet through a technique astronomers call gravitational microlensing. A wandering planet can be spotted traveling through space when it gravitationally concentrates light from a star in the background as it moves in front of it. This study, for example, came up with hundreds of candidate planets, but astronomers believe they could number in the billions in the Milky Way galaxy alone. Interestingly, a recent study suggests that there are between 100 and 10,000 wandering planets for every star in the Milky Way. This would mean that approximately one quadrillion wandering planets are traveling through our galaxy.
?Can life thrive on a wandering planet
The short answer is yes, life could theoretically thrive on free-floating wandering planets. If the Earth, for example, were expelled from the solar system, its entire surface would be frozen, including the oceans. (Imagine a planet Earth where life did not appear.) Astronomers believe that liquid water would remain under the mile-thick layer of ice. As Professor Avi Loeb explains, the underground water would be warmed by the radioactivity of the isotopes of the rocky core of our planet. Thermal currents could exist at the bottom of the ocean and provide an environment essential for the survival of single-celled organisms. However, complex life is unlikely to form without an oxygen-rich atmosphere over the ocean and some landmasses. However, the only way complex life forms could exist on such worlds is if they pre-existed on the planet before it was hurled into interstellar space.
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