Named a sign of a potentially habitable planet
Scientists have identified a sign that indicates the possible presence of complex life on the planet. This is a special tilt of the axis, Science Alert reports.
A new study has shown that a moderate tilt, like that of the Earth, helps increase oxygen production. Planets with too little or too much tilt of the atmosphere are most likely poor in oxygen and unsuitable for survival.
Earth is the only inhabited world we know of. Therefore, astronomers in search of extraterrestrial life primarily study planets similar to ours.
So, the planet should be small and rocky and rotate at a certain distance from the star, where it is not too cold and not too hot. But the emergence of life also depends on other, more complex factors.
The authors of the new study decided to study the presence and production of oxygen on other planets. Computer simulations have shown that the length of the day plays a critical role in this process. Over time, the Earth's rotation slowed down, its days lengthened, and the continents took a stable position. Each of these changes could contribute to an increase in oxygen content.
The tilt of the Earth's axis (23.5 degrees from the perpendicular) provides us with a change of seasons. Seasonal changes in temperature affect the oceans, causing mixing of layers and currents, as well as nutrient cycling.
“The tilting tilt increased the production of photosynthetic oxygen in the ocean,” the study said.
But too great a tilt (for example, like Uranus – 98 degrees), on the contrary, is fatal to life. The change of seasons will be too extreme.
Scientists noted that these data will help them narrow down the search for complex, possibly even intelligent life in the universe. The potentially habitable place in the Milky Way became known earlier. Scientists have suggested looking for life in the center of the galaxy.
