Scientists are finding evidence that the beginnings of life in the universe may have begun on planets with carbon-based cores. Even though Earth’s composition is less than 1% carbon, other planets with higher carbon compositions that orbit around stars may hold the keys to life as well.
Planets like 55 Cancri e have often been thought to have a composition made mostly of carbon, essentially making its core the possibility of being a giant diamond. It is twice the size of Earth, eight times more massive, and twice as dense. Its proximity to its star is 25 times closer than Mercury orbits our sun. The planet is located in the Cancer constellation, which is about 40 light-years away from Earth.
In 2012, NASA’s Spitzer Telescope spotted the ‘super Earth’ whizzing around its sun. It orbits around its star every 18 hours and is tidally locked. This means that one side of 55 Cancri e permanently faces its sun, and practically boils. Its surface temperature reaches temperatures of 4892ºF. The other is permanently facing away from it.
The NASA website describes the way the Spitzer telescope found the planet:
“Spitzer was able to see the light of the planet by watching it slip behind its star in what is called an occultation. Because the planet is brighter relative to its star when viewed in infrared light, Spitzer was able to measure the slight drop in total brightness that occurred as the planet disappeared from view. This technique, pioneered by Spitzer in 2005, has since been performed by other telescopes, including NASA’s Hubble and Kepler space telescopes. The method can be used to obtain information about a planet’s temperature, and in some cases, its composition.”
Even though its atmosphere is thin, 55 Cancri e is a good candidate for studying if life can truly exist far outside the solar system. If there’s life on planets this far out, let’s hope it’s just as beautiful as its diamond core.
