Kepler-62e

Kepler-62e
Exoplanet List of exoplanets

Artist's concept of a rocky exoplanet in the habitable zone of its host star, possibly compatible with Kepler-62e’s known data
Parent star
Star Kepler-62 (KOI-701)
Constellation Lyra
Right ascension (α) 18h 52m 51.06019s
Declination (δ) +45° 20′ 59.507″
Apparent magnitude (mV) 13.654[1]
Distance~1200 ly
(~368[2] pc)
Mass (m) 0.69 (± 0.02)[2] M☉
Radius (r) 0.64 (± 0.02)[2] R☉
Temperature (T) 4925 (± 70)[2] K
Metallicity [Fe/H] -0.37 (± 0.04)[2]
Age 7 (± 4)[2] Gyr
Physical characteristics
Mass(m)Unknown value less than or equal to 36; Earth's density would give it a mass of 4.17.[3] M⊕
Radius(r)1.61 (± 0.05)[2] R⊕
Stellar flux(F⊙)1.2 ± 0.2 ⊕
Temperature (T) 270 K (−3 °C; 26 °F)
Orbital elements
Semi-major axis(a) 0.427[2] AU
Eccentricity (e) ~0[2]
Orbital period(P) 122.3874[2] d
Inclination (i) 89.98[2]°
Discovery information
Discovery date 18 April 2013[2]
Discoverer(s) Borucki et al.
Discovery method Transit (Kepler Mission)[2]
Other detection methods Transit timing variation
Discovery site Kepler Space Observatory
Discovery status Published refereed article
Other designations
KOI-701.03; K00701.03; 2MASS J18525105+4520595 e; KOI-701 e; KIC 9002278 e; WISE J185251.03+452059.0 e
Database references
Extrasolar Planets
Encyclopaedia		data
SIMBADdata
Exoplanet Archivedata
Open Exoplanet Cataloguedata

Kepler-62e is a super-Earth exoplanet (extrasolar planet) discovered orbiting within the habitable zone of Kepler-62, the second outermost of five such planets discovered by NASA's Kepler spacecraft. Kepler-62e is located about 1,200 ly (370 pc) from Earth in the constellation of Lyra.[4] The exoplanet was found using the transit method, in which the dimming effect that a planet causes as it crosses in front of its star is measured. Kepler-62e may be a terrestrial or water-ice-dominated solid planet; it lies in the inner part of its host star's habitable zone[2][5] and has an Earth Similarity Index of 0.83.

Given the planet's age (7 ± 4 billion years), stellar flux (1.2 ± 0.2 times Earth's) and radius (1.61 ± 0.05 times Earth's), a rocky (silicate-iron) composition with the addition of a possibly substantial amount of water is considered plausible.[2] A modeling study accepted in The Astrophysical Journal suggests it is likely that a great majority of planets in Kepler-62e's size range are completely covered by ocean.[6][7]

Kepler-62e orbits its host star every 122 days and is roughly 60 percent larger than Earth.[8]

Confirmed exoplanet and host star

Kepler-62e is a super-Earth with a radius 1.61 times that of Earth.[2] The planet orbits a star that is slightly smaller and cooler than the Sun, named Kepler-62, which is orbited by a total of five transiting planets, of which Kepler-62f has the longest orbital period.[2] The star would appear a slight peach color to the naked eye.[2]

Notable Exoplanets – Kepler Space Telescope
Confirmed small exoplanets in habitable zones.
(Kepler-62e, Kepler-62f, Kepler-186f, Kepler-296e, Kepler-296f, Kepler-438b, Kepler-440b, Kepler-442b)
(Kepler Space Telescope; 6 January 2015).[9]
Comparison of the sizes of planets Kepler-69c, Kepler-62e, Kepler-62f, and the Earth.
(Exoplanets are artists' conceptions.)		 The Kepler Space Telescope search volume, in the context of the Milky Way Galaxy.

Cultural impact

On 9 May 2013, a congressional hearing by two U.S. House of Representatives subcommittees discussed "Exoplanet Discoveries: Have We Found Other Earths?," prompted by the discovery of exoplanet Kepler-62f, along with Kepler-62e and Kepler-69c. A related special issue of the journal Science, published earlier, described the discovery of the exoplanets.[10] Kepler-62f and the other Kepler-62 exoplanets are being specially targeted as part of the SETI search programs.[11]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Kepler Input Catalog search result". Space Telescope Science Institute. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Borucki, William J.; et al. (18 April 2013). "Kepler-62: A Five-Planet System with Planets of 1.4 and 1.6 Earth Radii in the Habitable Zone". Science Express 340 (6132): 587–90. arXiv:1304.7387. Bibcode:2013Sci...340..587B. doi:10.1126/science.1234702. PMID 23599262. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
  3. ↑ http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/cgi-bin/DisplayOverview/nph-DisplayOverview?objname=Kepler-62+e&type=CONFIRMED_PLANET
  4. ↑ Kepler-62e: Super-Earth and Possible Water World
  5. ↑ 3 Potentially Habitable 'Super-Earths' Explained (Infographic)
  6. ↑ "Water worlds surface: Planets covered by global ocean with no land in sight". Harvard Gazette. 18 April 2013. Retrieved 19 April 2013.
  7. ↑ Kaltenegger, L.; Sasselov, D.; Rugheimer, S. (October 2013). "Water Planets in the Habitable Zone: Atmospheric Chemistry, Observable Features, and the case of Kepler-62e and −62f". The Astrophysical Journal 1304: 5058. arXiv:1304.5058. Bibcode:2013ApJ...775L..47K. doi:10.1088/2041-8205/775/2/L47. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  8. ↑ Super-Earths: Two Earth-like planets that could host life discovered. Indian Express. 20 April 2013
  9. ↑ Clavin, Whitney; Chou, Felicia; Johnson, Michele (6 January 2015). "NASA's Kepler Marks 1,000th Exoplanet Discovery, Uncovers More Small Worlds in Habitable Zones". NASA. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  10. ↑ Staff (3 May 2013). "Special Issue: Exoplanets". Science. Retrieved 18 May 2013.
  11. ↑ "Has Kepler Found Ideal SETI-target Planets?". SETI Institute. 19 April 2013. Retrieved 17 September 2013.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kepler Mission.

Coordinates: 18h 52m 51.06019s, +45° 20′ 59.507″

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