Discovery of Super Earth 55 Cancri e with Thick Atmosphere Offers Hope for Habitable Planets and Insights into Early Planet Evolution

In a nearby solar system, a super Earth planet named 55 Cancri e has been discovered, which is twice as big as Earth and has a thick atmosphere. This rocky planet’s atmosphere is composed of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, although the exact amounts are unknown. On the other hand, Earth’s atmosphere consists of nitrogen, oxygen, argon, and other gases.

Researchers have studied the super Earth using observations from the Webb Space Telescope and found that it has a temperature of up to 4,200 degrees Fahrenheit. However, this planet is unlikely to support life due to its boiling temperatures. Nevertheless, its existence offers hope for other rocky planets with thick atmospheres that may be more habitable. The study was published in the journal Nature and provides strong evidence that this super Earth has an atmosphere.

Ian Crossfield, an astronomer at the University of Kansas, who led the research team said that studying this super Earth can offer insights into the early evolution of Earth and Mars. Both these planets may have had magma oceans that have since cooled. Renyu Hu, a planetary scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory involved in the research describes this discovery as a rare window into understanding the early phases of planet evolution.