Scientists discovered when the first continents appeared on rocky planets in the universe

Scientists have determined when the first continents appeared on rocky planets in the Universe, according to a study published in the American Astronomical Society Research Notes. ScienceAlert writes that the existence of continents is important for the sustainability of life on planets; Therefore, scientists say that you should look for such exoplanets to find extraterrestrial life here.

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It is believed that the movement of lithospheric plates on rocky planets, which contributes to the emergence of continents, is not entirely necessary for the emergence of life on the planet. Some studies show that billions of years ago, on Earth, when life appeared, the movement of lithospheric plates was not very active. However, the authors of the study say that continents are necessary for life to continue and evolve into more complex creatures.

Important

So if you look for planets with continents, you’re more likely to find not only extraterrestrial life, but also complex life. Scientists have found a way to find out which planets might have continents. Their appearance is largely due to the heat generated by the rocky planet’s core. If this heat is sufficient, lithosphere movement will occur and continents will emerge.

The presence of certain chemical elements in the bowels of the planet that contribute to the release of internal heat also plays a role in this. Such elements enter the composition of a rocky planet from the same material from which its parent stars are formed.

As part of the research, scientists studied different populations of stars: some that were younger and had higher metallicity (astronomers call all elements heavier than helium and hydrogen metals) and older stars that had lower metallicity. Scientists have also modeled rocky planets that might orbit such stars.

Approximately 9.5 billion years after the Big Bang, that is, 3 billion years ago, the movement of lithosphere plates began on Earth. The study shows that the first continents appeared on rocky planets of young stars 5 billion years ago. And on the same planets, but around ancient stars, continents appeared even earlier – 7-8 billion years ago.

Scientists have found that continents will form more slowly on most planets than on Earth. They also discovered a connection between the presence of continents on planets and the ratio of iron to helium in stars. Scientists believe that continents appeared earlier on planets where the ratio of the above elements in stars was lower.

The authors of the study believe that we should look for potentially habitable planets with continents around low-metallic stars like the Sun.

As research has shown, the process of formation of continents on such planets was completed faster than on Earth, and therefore advanced life could exist here. Perhaps these creatures are much more developed than humans.

Previous studies have shown that Earth-like planets were more likely to appear in the early history of our galaxy, and that this probability decreases as we get closer to the present day. Therefore, if astronomers can discover the same rocky planet with continents, then life could arise here several billion years earlier than on Earth.

Focus I have already written that scientists unexpectedly found a planet in a unique star system consisting of three objects. The reanalysis of images of a system consisting of two stars and a non-full star came as a complete surprise to astronomers.