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Hycean planets might be

habitable ocean worlds
Posted by Paul Scott Anderson August 29, 2021

Artist’s concept of a Hycean planet, with a global ocean and hydrogen

atmosphere. Image via Amanda Smith/ University of Cambridge.

Is there life beyond Earth? It seems extremely

probable, although we still don’t have the hard
evidence. But astronomers said on August 26, 2021,
that they’ve identified a new class of exoplanets that
are a big step forward in the search for life. They’re
calling them Hycean worlds, from the words hydrogen
and ocean. Planet-wide oceans and hydrogen-rich
atmospheres might cover these worlds. And yet, the
researchers said, they might be habitable.

Researchers from the University of Cambridge led this

intriguing research. The peer-reviewed Astrophysical
Journal published it on August 26.

Hycean planets: Like Earth but di6erent

According to the researchers, Hycean worlds could
greatly accelerate the search for life elsewhere. In
some ways they are reminiscent of Earth, largely or
even completely covered by oceans. Yet they are also
uniquely alien: up to 2.6 times the diameter of Earth,
with temperatures up to 200 degrees C (about 400
degrees F) and thick hydrogen atmospheres. This
places them somewhere between Earth and giant
planets like Neptune or Uranus.

00:16 / 01:52

Indeed, many such worlds in this size range are

already known to exist, the super-Earths and mini-
Neptunes. Scientists say that planets in this size range
are the most common in our galaxy.

There may also be di!erent kinds of Hyceans,

including “dark” and “cold.” As noted in the paper:

Our investigations include tidally locked “Dark

Hycean” worlds that permit habitable conditions
only on their permanent nightsides and “Cold
Hycean” worlds that see negligible irradiation
[receive little radiation from their stars].

Graphic representation of the habitable zones for Hycean planets, including both
dark and cold. The habitable zone for terrestrial planets is much smaller. Black
dots with rings are promising Hycean candidates. Image via Madhusudhan et al./
Kopparapu et al. 2013/ The Astrophysical Journal.

Super-Earths, mini-Neptunes and

Hyceans
Super-Earths are rocky but larger than Earth. Even
now, little is known about what kinds of atmospheres
they have, although some have been found in the
habitable zones of their stars where temperatures
could allow liquid water. Mini-Neptunes though have
long been thought to be inhospitable for life as we
know it. Most mini-Neptunes lack a solid surface and
the temperatures and pressures in their atmospheres
would make it very di"cult for life to evolve.

What the new study suggests, however, is that some

of those worlds may be able to support life after all.
Those are the Hyceans. As lead author Nikku
Madhusudhan at the University of Cambridge stated:

Hycean planets open a whole new avenue in our

search for life elsewhere.

Are Hycean planets habitable?

How, then, might Hycean planets be habitable? Having
plentiful liquid water is of course a good start. These
planets, unlike most mini-Neptunes, may have solid
surfaces, like Earth. Many of the known Hycean
candidates are larger and hotter than Earth, but still
would be able to host large oceans, the researchers
say. The conditions might be similar to some of the
more extreme aquatic environments on our planet,
but could theoretically still support at least microbial
life.

Nikku Madhusudhan at the University of Cambridge led the new study about
Hycean planets and their potential habitability. Image via University of Cambridge.

By their nature, these planets would also mean that

the habitable zones around their stars could be a lot
larger than those in systems with Earth-like planets.
That’s another plus for the possibility of life. The
habitable zone is the region around a star where
temperatures would be suitable for liquid water on
the surface of a rocky planet.

Another previous study, of the mini-Neptune K2-18b,

supports the possibility of habitable Hycean worlds.
Based on this study, scientists identified the new class
of exoplanets, the Hyceans. While some scientists
refer to K2-18b as a super-Earth, most now classify it
as a mini-Neptune.

Looking for biosignatures

So, how would astronomers look for evidence of life
on any of these worlds? They will search for
biosignatures, chemical fingerprints of biological
processes in the planets’ atmospheres. Some common
ones are oxygen, ozone, methane and nitrous oxide,
as well as methyl chloride and dimethyl sulphide. The
last two are not common on Earth, but might be on
hydrogen-rich planets. According to Madhusudhan:

Essentially, when we’ve been looking for these

various molecular signatures, we have been
focusing on planets similar to Earth, which is a
reasonable place to start. But we think Hycean
planets o!er a better chance of finding several
trace biosignatures.

Artist’s concept of K2-18b, the most promising candidate so far for a Hycean
world. It orbits in the habitable zone of its star, and water vapor is already known
to exist in its atmosphere. Image via ESA/ Hubble, M. Kornmesser/ UCL News.

Madhusudhan and his team say that many of these

biosignatures should be easily detectable on Hycean
planets. In fact, the nature of the planets themselves –
larger sizes, higher temperatures and hydrogen-rich
atmospheres – means that the biosignatures would be
even more easily detectable than on Earth-like
planets. From the paper:

We find that a number of trace terrestrial

biomarkers that may be expected to be present in
Hycean atmospheres would be readily detectable
using modest observing time with the James Webb
Space Telescope (JWST). We identify a sizable
sample of nearby potential Hycean planets that
can be ideal targets for such observations in
search of exoplanetary biosignatures.

Upcoming observations
Excitingly, it might not be too long before we get some
good spectroscopic observations of some Hycean
planets. Astronomers already have a good sampling of
candidate Hycean-type worlds to study, and upcoming
space telescopes like the James Webb Space
Telescope (the Webb) will be able to analyze their
atmospheres. All the candidates are fairly close, from
35 to 150 light-years away, and orbit red dwarf stars.

K2-18b is currently the primary Hycean candidate, and

observations with the Webb, which will launch
sometime after October 31 this year, are already
planned.

Most Hyceans are probably mini-Neptune-sized worlds. Both mini-Neptunes and

super-Earths are larger than Earth but smaller than Neptune. Image via Patterson
Clark/ Washington Post/ Quora.

If any of these candidate Hyceans do in fact support

life, the upcoming studies with the Webb and other
telescopes have a good chance of detecting signs of it.
As Madhusudhan noted:

A biosignature detection would transform our

understanding of life in the universe. We need to
be open about where we expect to find life and
what form that life could take, as nature continues
to surprise us in often unimaginable ways.

Astronomers also announced last July that another

mini-Neptune, TOI-1231 b, has a deep atmosphere
ideal for further study by the Webb and the Hubble
Space Telescope. It will be exciting to see what future
observations of worlds like this, and Hyceans in
particular, reveal.

Bottom line: Astronomers at the University of

Cambridge have identified a new class of potentially
habitable exoplanets called Hyceans. These are huge,
hot worlds that could be covered by oceans and have
thick hydrogen atmospheres.

Source: Habitability and Biosignatures of Hycean

Worlds

Source (preprint): Habitability and Biosignatures of

Hycean Worlds

Via University of Cambridge

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Posted August 29, 2021 in Space

Paul Scott Anderson

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About the Author:

Paul Scott Anderson has had a passion for space

exploration that began when he was a child when he
watched Carl Sagan’s Cosmos. While in school he was
known for his passion for space exploration and
astronomy. He started his blog The Meridiani Journal in
2005, which was a chronicle of planetary exploration. In
2015, the blog was renamed as Planetaria. While
interested in all aspects of space exploration, his
primary passion is planetary science. In 2011, he started
writing about space on a freelance basis, and now
currently writes for AmericaSpace and Futurism (part of
Vocal). He has also written for Universe Today and
SpaceFlight Insider, and has also been published in The
Mars Quarterly and has done supplementary writing for
the well-known iOS app Exoplanet for iPhone and iPad.

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Best Newest Oldest

Greg Mohney − ⚑
2 years ago

"Is there life beyond Earth? It seems extremely probable,

although we still don’t have the hard evidence."

I think you mean any evidence.

1 1 Reply • Share ›

James Feldkamp − ⚑
JF
> Greg Mohney
…
2 years ago

nice blog for me.According to James Feldkamp ,

cybersecurity risks necessitate a defensive strategy
similar to that of American football. In this popular game,
the defensive line serves as the initial line of defence.
Behind this defence is the linebacker, who supports the
defensive line.

James Feldkamp, a former US Navy Commander, is

currently an adjunct professor at George Mason
University and the Henley-Putnam School of Strategic
Security, where he teaches undergraduate courses on
domestic and international terrorism.

0 0 Reply • Share ›

ChinaBroc − ⚑
2 years ago

So?

0 0 Reply • Share ›

Roy Phillips − ⚑
2 years ago edited

If you Wnd a good one, send Kevin Costner to negotiate with

its inhabitants. He's all about Waterworlds, you know?

0 0 Reply • Share ›

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