When searching for life on other planets, scientists are guided by the presence of water. After all, it is known that water is the source of the origin and evolution of living organisms. In this case, the planet Gliese 1214 b should literally be teeming with the diversity of life, because it consists almost entirely of water.
Move to a distance of 40 light years from us in the constellation Ophiuchus. There we will find a red dwarf, around which Gliese 1214 b rotates at a distance of 2.1 million km. So that you understand, one year lasts only 36 hours!
On the weight of Gliese, 1214 b is 6.55 times the Earth's, and 2.5 times more in diameter. However, the world is inferior to earth gravity due to its low density. The indicator of gravity reaches 0.91 g, which resembles the situation on Venus.
Comparative dimensions of Gliese 1214 b
But the world has prepared a lot of surprises. First of all, the analysis of the composition showed that Gliese 1214 b is 75% by weight composed of water and only 25% is allocated for stony materials and iron. Perhaps this will not surprise you, because in many sources there is information that the Earth is 71% covered with water.
But here we are talking about the mass ratio. If you take all the water on Earth and oppose it to rocky materials, then the amount of terrestrial water by mass will be only 0.02%! Now imagine the situation on Gliese 1214 b.
Gliese 1214 b on the background of the parent star
But do not think that you are destined to be in the water world, where a dense layer of water covers a modest rocky core. Researchers believe that the surface of the planet is warming up at 200 ° C. This leads to the fact that the entire water volume acquires exotic forms. First of all, the atmosphere is represented by dense water vapor with small patches of hydrogen and helium.
If we go below, we will encounter hot ice. This exotic substance is not found in natural conditions on Earth, but it can be created in laboratory conditions. The fact is that at high pressure (more than 20,000 atmospheres) water is able to remain in a solid state even when heated to +76 ° C.
In addition, the liquid is present in the form of super-liquid water. This species is also not found in terrestrial conditions. Its feature is incredible fluidity. It flows almost without friction. That is, you could pour it into a glass, put it straight, and the liquid will freely pour over the edge.
Due to its unusual characteristics, Gliese 1214 b seems interesting to explore. Researchers want to understand how it was formed, and whether its characteristics are something typical or a unique world.
