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A Habitable Zone for Complex Life (HZCL) is a range of distances from a star suitable for complex aerobic life. Different types of limitations preventing complex life give rise to different zones. [1] Conventional habitable zones are based on compatibility with water. [2] Most zones start at a distance from the host star and then end at a distance farther from the star. A planet would need to orbit inside the boundaries of this zone. With multiple zonal constraints, the zones would need to overlap for the planet to support complex life. The requirements for bacterial life produce much larger zones than those for complex life, which requires a very narrow zone. [3] [4] [5]
The first confirmed exoplanets was discovered in 1992, several planets orbiting the pulsar PSR B1257+12. [6] Since then the list of exoplanets has grown to the thousands. [7] Most exoplanets are hot Jupiter planets, that orbit very close the star. [8] Many exoplanets are super-Earths, that could be a gas dwarf or large rocky planet, like Kepler-442b at a mass 2.36 times Earths. [9]
Unstable stars are young and old stars, or very large or small stars. Unstable stars have changing solar luminosity that changes the size of the life habitable zones. Unstable stars also produce extreme solar flares and coronal mass ejections. Solar flares and coronal mass ejections can strip away a planet's atmosphere that is not replaceable. Thus life habitable zones require and very stable star like the Sun, at ±0.1% solar luminosity change. [10] [11] Finding a stable star, like the Sun, is the search for a solar twin, with solar analogs that have been found. [12] Star metallicity, mass, age, color, and temperature all effect luminosity variations. [13] [14] [15] The Sun, a G2V star, has a mid-range metallicity optimal for the formation of rocky planets. [16] Dwarf stars (red dwarf/orange dwarf/brown dwarf/subdwarf) are not only unstable, but also emit low energy, so the habitable zone is very close to the star and planets become tidally locked on the timescales needed for the development of life. [17] Giant stars (subgiant/giant star/red giant/red supergiant) are unstable and emit high energy, so the habitable zone is very far from the star. [18] Multiple-star systems are also very common and are not suitable for complex life, as the planet orbit would be unstable due to multiple gravitational forces and solar radiation. Liquid water is possible in Multiple-star systems. [19] [20] [21] [22]
A conventional habitable zone is defined by liquid water.
Over time and with more research, astronomers, cosmologists and astrobiologist have discovered more parameters needed for life. Each parameter could have a corresponding zone. Some of the named zones include: [29] [30]
Some factors that depend on planetary distance and may limit complex aerobic life have not been given zone names. These include:
Life on Earth is carbon-based. However, some theories suggest that life could be based on other elements in the periodic table. [101] Other elements proposed have been silicon, boron, arsenic, ammonia, methane and others. As more research has been done on life on Earth, it has been found that only carbon's organic molecules have the complexity and stability to form life. [102] [103] [104] Carbon properties allows for complex chemical bonding that produces covalent bonds needed for organic chemistry. Carbon molecules are lightweight and relatively small in size. Carbon's ability to bond to oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur (called CHNOPS) is key to life. [105] [106] [107]
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Most biological molecules are made from covalent combinations of six important elements, whose chemical symbols are CHNOPS. ... Although more than 25 types of elements can be found in biomolecules, six elements are most common. These are called the CHNOPS elements; the letters stand for the chemical abbreviations of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, and sulfur.