You don’t have to be a math enthusiast to see magic Pi magic. Pi is a constant used in mathematics and many other calculations, it is the ratio between the circumference and diameter of a circular object. It never changes, so it’s very useful in math. March 14 is designated "Pi Day" according to the first three digits of Pi (3.14).
Pi is actually infinitely long, but the first three digits are most commonly used in simple math operations and in everyday life. Not only that, astronomy today is gradually proving the magic of Pi. Researchers have just discovered a planet roughly the size of Earth and orbiting a star all the way around 3.14 days. It is indeed Planet Pi.
Usually, the discovery of an exoplanet is not worthy of news. Scientists using sky scanning have discovered more exoplanets than they thought, but this time it’s really special news.
Scientists used data from the Kepler space telescope to detect and quickly realize that the planet’s orbital period is like a calculation on paper. It is approximately the size of the Earth and its surface is quite concave. Its sun is a dwarf star, which is much quieter and cooler than stars like our Sun.
However, the star is small and cool does not mean that the environment on planet Pi (officially K2-315b) is also pleasant. In fact, Planet Pi is an uncomfortable place at all. With an orbit of only 3.14 days, it is extremely close to its star. It orbits around this fireball at a speed of about 291,000 km / h and due to its proximity to the sun, its surface temperature is estimated to be around 176 degrees Celsius. The scientists jokingly say that this temperature is perfect. to bake pastries.
Discovering giant gas balls in space is very easy, but the smaller the planets, the harder it is to find. The researchers say that in the near future we might find more Earth-like (or even Mars-like) worlds.
Prajwal Niraula, Ph.D. student at Massachussett University of Technology, USA and lead researcher, said that “with better algorithms, hopefully one day we can search for small planets. even as small as Mars ”.
