Kepler-438b is Being Irradiated by a Superflaring Red Dwarf

Posted on November 19, 2015

A new study has found that most Earth-like planets are left uninhabitable after being blasted by radiation. The study was conducted by University of Warwick researchers. They give the harsh atmosphere of planet Kepler-438b as an example.

Kepler-438b is shown in the artist's interpretation being regularly irradiated by huge flares of radiation from its parent star, a superflaring Red Dwarf. The planet is regularly irradiated every few hundred days and has its atmosphere stripped away. The researchers say the superflares are about ten times more powerful than those ever recorded on the Sun and equivalent to the same energy as 100 billion megatons of TNT.

Kepler-438b is so far the exoplanet with the highest recorded Earth Similarity Index. It is both similar in size and temperature to the Earth but it is in closer proximity to the Red Dwarf than the Earth is to the Sun.

Dr David Armstrong of the University of Warwick's Astrophysics Group, the lead researcher of the study, says in a statement, "Unlike the Earth's relatively quiet sun, Kepler-438 emits strong flares every few hundred days, each one stronger than the most powerful recorded flare on the Sun. It is likely that these flares are associated with coronal mass ejections, which could have serious damaging effects on the habitability of the planet. If the planet, Kepler-438b, has a magnetic field like the Earth, it may be shielded from some of the effects. However, if it does not, or the flares are strong enough, it could have lost its atmosphere, be irradiated by extra dangerous radiation and be a much harsher place for life to exist."

A research paper on the findings was published in the journal, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

SPACE