Researchers have found evidence of a planet the same size as Earth, but in another solar system, with a magnetic field like Earth, does that make it habitable?

According to the study, published Monday in the journal Nature Astronomy, the planet called YZ Ceti b is a rocky planet orbiting a star about 12 light-years from Earth, and understanding the planet's magnetic field could open the way to discovering other planets with similar magnetic fields.

The magnetic field helps preserve the Earth by stabilizing the life-protecting atmosphere by scattering high-energy particles and plasma that regularly explode from the Sun, the magnetic field protects living organisms from the sun's harmful rays, and pulls the compass needle to the north, guiding us to the planet's original directions.

Magnetic fields are interesting because they are one of the most important factors determining the habitability of a planet (Getty Images)

Shield of life on the planet

Using radio telescopes with a very large array, scientists have found that the newly discovered planet emits a repetitive radio signal. The researchers hypothesized that these signals could be the result of interactions between the exoplanet's magnetic field and the tiny red dwarf star orbiting it about 12 light-years from Earth.

Lead author Sebastian Pineda, an astrophysicist at the University of Colorado-Boulder, said the search for life on other planets depends in part on whether rocky, Earth-like exoplanets like this one also contain magnetic fields.

Pineda explained – in a statement to Al Jazeera Net via e-mail – that magnetic fields are interesting for astronomers, because they are one of the most important factors that determine the suitability of a planet for habitation or not, adding that "without a magnetic field can active particles from the star around which the planet revolves to lead to erosion of the planet's atmosphere, which leads to stripping the cover of gas that can support life on it."

According to the main author of the study, the discovered planet does not appear to be habitable, according to the evidence available so far, especially since its magnetic field is very small due to the close proximity between the planet and its star (the relationship between them is similar to the relationship between the sun and Mercury in the solar system), which makes scientists skeptical about the level of temperature on it, in addition to the shortness of its day due to the great speed at which it orbits its star, as one of its years does not exceed two days in our planet.

The magnetic field protects living organisms from the sun's harmful rays and determines the original directions (Getty Images)

Aurora Borealis of the Star

The researchers hypothesized that the stellar radio waves they discovered were generated by interactions between the exoplanets' magnetic field and the star orbiting it. However, in order to detect such radio waves over long distances they must be very strong.

While magnetic fields have previously been detected on large exoplanets the size of Jupiter, doing so for a relatively small Earth-sized exoplanet requires a different technique, according to a press release published on EurekAlert.

Pineda explained that the aim of the study was to find out the invisible magnetic fields by observing planets near their stars, which have a size close to the size of Earth. He noted that the radio waves the team observed were essentially aurora borealis on the star, likely caused by interactions with the planet's body.

For the authors, the small red star YZ City and its exoplanet known as YZ City b provided a perfect pair for the relationship between the star and its planet, as the planet is so close to the star that it completes a full orbit in just two days.

Because the star's rays scatter away from the planet's magnetic field, they then interact with the star's own magnetic field, generating radio waves strong enough for scientists to observe on Earth. By measuring the strength of these radio waves, researchers can determine the strength of the planet's magnetic field.