In doing so, we will test our
models for planet formation and evaluate the probability that habitable planets are present around stars of various types.
Being able to characterize the chemical and dust properties of brown dwarf disks will have wide - reaching implications towards the eventual goal of assessing the
prospects for planet formation in these disks.
In addition, all of the TRAPPIST - 1 planets are Earth - sized and terrestrial, making them an ideal focus of
study for planet formation and potential habitability.
We were very surprised based on the fact that previous models people
used for planet formation suggested a much higher critical shock pressure,» says Richard Kraus, now a scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and lead author on the paper published in March in Nature Geoscience.
Bottom line: All 7 of the TRAPPIST - 1 planets are Earth - sized and terrestrial, making them an ideal focus of
study for planet formation and potential habitability.
This has
implications for planet formation and the origin of the collection of rocky and super-Earth-sized planets discovered in orbit close about their parent stars.