A new study has shown that gas giants in distant planetary systems can destroy life in Earth. This means that Jupiter is a black sheep as far as gas giants go since it protects life on Earth.
Gas giants like Jupiter are massive on a scale that is difficult to understand. As many as 1,300 Earths can fit inside the volume of Jupiter. A new study shows that such giant planets can act like agents of chaos in the universe, making sure that nothing can live on its Earth-like neighbours.
In our solar system, Jupiter plays an important role as a protector. Because of its enormous gravitational field, it deflects comets and asteroids that might otherwise hit our planet. This creates a more stable environment for life. However, a study published in The Astronomical Journal in October suggests that in some planetary systems, gas giants like Jupiter can kick smaller planets out of orbit and destroy their climates.
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The study focused on the HD 141399 system, where four giant planets are farther from their star, which is unlike most other known planetary systems. This fact makes it a good model for comparison with our solar system, where Jupiter and Saturn are also quite far from the Sun.
Using data from the system’s planets, Stephen Kane, author of the paper and astrophysicist at UC Riverside, ran multiple computer simulations to understand what effect those four giants had on the system. Specifically, they wanted to look at the “habitable zone” in the star system and if an Earth-like planet could stay there in stable orbit. The habitable zone refers to the region within a planetary system where the temperature is just right – warm enough for water to exist in a liquid state, while at the same time cool enough to prevent vaporisation. This is an essential condition for life as we know it to exist.
The study showed that multiple giant planets outside the habitable zone can destroy the chances for life happening within the habitable zone. A second paper, published in The Astronomical Journal a week later, shows how one big planet in the middle of the zone can also have a similar effect.
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First published on: 03-11-2023 at 15:33 IST
