Preliminary results presented at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly in Vienna indicate that “Venus-like” exoplanets—described as hot, hellish worlds forming through pathways unlike those that produce habitable, ocean-bearing planets—may be more common in the galaxy than true Earth-like exoplanets. The work suggests Venus-type planets could be roughly twice as prevalent as habitable planets that form with oceans, implying that many systems may follow atmospheric and thermal evolution routes that do not lead to surface water. The findings are based on early study results rather than final published conclusions. The research also highlights that our own Solar System’s Venus, often used as a reference point for understanding similar exoplanet outcomes, has been “underexplored” compared with Earth. Together, the reports emphasize that observational and theoretical efforts to characterize exoplanet populations may need to account for the possibility that non-habitable Venus analogs are at least as frequent as potentially habitable Earth-like worlds.
Study suggests Venus-like exoplanets may be more common than ocean-bearing Earth-like worlds
Preliminary results presented at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly in Vienna indicate that “Venus-like” exoplanets—described as hot, hellish worlds forming through pathways unlike those...
- Preliminary results are presented at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly in Vienna.
- The study suggests Venus-like (“hellish”) exoplanets may be about twice as common as ocean-bearing Earth-like planets.
- The comparison focuses on habitable planets that form with oceans versus Venus-like outcomes.
- The reported results are preliminary rather than final published findings.
- Commentary notes that Venus in our Solar System has been comparatively underexplored as a reference for exoplanet studies.
Preliminary results of a study presented at the recent European Geosciences Union General Assembly in Vienna indicate that hellish Venus-type planets may be about twice as common as habitable planets that form with oceans.
3 months agoExoplanet hunters are keen to find the next extrasolar earthlike planet, one that may harbor life as we know it. But preliminary results from a new study indicate that our galaxy may be filled with a plethora of exo-Venuses. Yet as one exoplanetary researcher notes: the template for such exo-worlds --- our own Venus --- has been ‘criminally underexplored.’
3 months ago
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