New Study Reveals Why Most Planets in the Milky Way Are Uninhabited

Astronomers have found that red dwarf stars can produce such high levels of ultraviolet radiation that it could affect the possibility of life on planets close to them. The results of the study were published in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Red dwarf stars, which are cooler and smaller than the Sun, make up 75% of the stars in the Milky Way. Some scientists believe that rocky planets that orbit red dwarfs provide suitable conditions for the emergence and development of life.

But the authors of a new study have found that red dwarfs can produce intense flares with enormous levels of ultraviolet radiation that are greater than previously thought. The findings could have sweeping implications for the search for extraterrestrial life on nearby rocky planets.

For their study, the scientists used archived data from the GALEX space telescope, which operated from 2003 to 2013, to search for flares on red dwarf stars within 300 light-years of Earth. As a result, they discovered almost 200 flashes carrying both near and far ultraviolet radiation.

Scientists say ultraviolet radiation from stellar flares could either destroy planets’ atmospheres, compromising their ability to be habitable, or help form the RNA building blocks that are needed to create life.

The results of the new study challenge existing models of stellar flares, as scientists found that far-ultraviolet radiation is on average three times more energetic than expected. Scientists believe that the impact of such radiation on the planet can either destroy its atmosphere or destroy the life existing there.

According to the authors of the study, it was believed that only a few stars create very strong ultraviolet radiation through flares, which can affect the habitability of the planet. But it turned out that a huge number of stars have this ability.

Thus, a new study casts doubt on the assumption that rocky planets orbit red dwarfs, where extraterrestrial life could exist. So far, astronomers do not know why red dwarfs emit so much radiation and this is a subject for future research.

The study’s findings may indicate that most stars in the Milky Way may not have habitable planets. And this could be the answer to the famous Fermi paradox: if aliens exist, where are they all?