Since the search for exoplanets began in 1992, more than 6,000 have been documented, of which only about a hundred can be considered Earth-like. When we talk about planets like us, we’re usually talking about their rocky morphology or size, not too far from Earth. However, if we want to find Earth 2, it would be ideal to have a year or so for its orbit. That is, it takes the same amount of time for the Earth to make one complete revolution around the Sun as it does to revolve around its star. Which is more difficult to find with conventional telescopes. Fortunately, the European Space Agency (ESA) is already working on PLATO, a unique telescope that will be in charge of searching for planets that have been invisible to us until now.
In Search of Earth 2. Generally, exoplanets are searched for using the transit method. It detects a star’s brightness fluctuations the moment a planet orbits it comes between it and our telescope. It would be something like looking at small eclipses. Typically, this is done with stars much smaller than Earth and planets with very small orbits.
Everything has an explanation. If the star is small, changes in its brightness as the planet moves around it are more easily detected. On the other hand, if the planet’s orbit is small, a more complete rotation is observed in the same period, which makes these fluctuations easier to detect. To see a year’s orbit, we need to point the telescope at the star in question for several years, ensuring regular fluctuations in brightness.
Plato Yes it can. As mentioned in an article published about Plato IFLSciencePLATO does not have one very large observatory, but rather 26 small, independent cameras: four groups of six, plus two fast cameras. This, on the one hand, gives it more precision and makes it possible to detect small changes in very bright stars that would otherwise be invisible. But it allows you to observe large areas of space to analyze many stars at the same time. You can stand at the same point for a long time, without constantly moving around many stars. Ideal for detecting exoplanets that take a long time to make one complete revolution around their star.
If we add to all this that it will focus on the size of the Sun and the planets within its habitable zone, then it has everything to find the long-awaited Earth 2.
Also earthquakes. Plato will not only be in charge of searching for exoplanets. He will also study stellar earthquakes. They occur when sound waves are generated inside stars that bounce and cause them to vibrate, stretch and contract in a tiny way. As a result, small changes in the star’s brightness occur that can be analyzed to determine its mass, radius, and even age.
The Ring and the Moon. Plato is expected to be so precise that it will also be able to detect exorings and exomoons. Although there are some candidates, the detection of any rings or moons outside the solar system has not yet been definitively confirmed. And it will be interesting to do this, since in our own neighborhood we have seen that they can give us very useful information about the origin of their planets. For example, the Moon was probably formed by the impact of a Mars-sized object when the Earth was very small. Additionally, although this is only a guess, just because a planet is uninhabitable does not mean that its satellite is also uninhabitable. Beyond finding Earth 2, finding life-friendly moons would be interesting.
2027. All this and more will be achieved by PLATO, a space telescope whose launch, if all goes well, is scheduled for March 2027. Meanwhile, ESA continues to work to ensure that everything is in place when the time comes
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