Proxima b: What could I say you already do not know about it?

This august, we have published clear evidence of a planet orbiting the nearest star to Earth, Proxima Centauri, at a distance of 1.295 parsecs (4.2 ly) and one of the best-studied low-mass star. The planet, named Proxima b, obits is cool M dwarf with a period of 11.2 days at a semi-major-axis distance of around 0.05 astronomical units. This distance puts the planet well within the temperate zone around its star, allowing a temperature suitable for liquid water to exist on its surface. The planet minimum mass is of 1.3 MEarth, a little more massive than the Earth and current knowledge points to a rocky composition. Proxima b is, therefore, the closest exoplanet to us, and it may also be the closest possible abode for life outside the Solar System.

In this presentation, I will explain our Pale Red Dot campaign (https://palereddot.org/), resulting in the confirmation of Proxima b, in the context of our larger efforts to understand the formation and evolution of planetary systems around these cool stars, efforts materialised in the Cool Tiny Beats and CARMENES projects

Fecha: 
15/09/2016 - 12:30
Conferenciante: 
Dr. Pedro Amado
Filiación: 
IAA - CSIC


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