天文学家首次发现宜居带内岩石行星拥有大气层

哈佛大学的天文学家首次确认了位于另一恒星宜居带内的岩石行星LHS 1140 b拥有大气层1。这颗距地球约48光年的行星通过逸出的氦气信号显示其大气存在1，为寻找潜在可居住的系外行星提供了关键证据。

研究团队利用智利麦哲伦天文台的WINERED分光仪进行观测，发现该行星的大气可能已保留超过30亿年1。这项研究由哈佛大学地球与行星科学博士Collin Cherubim主导，在天文系主任David Charbonneau和环境科学与工程教授Robin Wordsworth的指导下完成1。研究成果已于2026年7月16日发表在《科学》杂志上1。

Astronomers have identified the first atmosphere surrounding a rocky exoplanet located in the habitable zone of another star.1 The planet, designated LHS 1140 b and situated approximately 48 light-years from Earth, represents a significant discovery in the search for potentially habitable worlds beyond our solar system.1 Researchers detected the atmosphere through observations of escaping helium, providing strong evidence that the planetary atmosphere may have persisted for more than 3 billion years.1

The discovery was made using the WINERED spectrograph at the Magellan Observatory in Chile and published in Science on July 16, 2026.1 Leading the research was Collin Cherubim, a doctoral candidate in Earth and Planetary Sciences at Harvard University, working under the advisorship of David Charbonneau, director of Harvard's astronomy program, and Robin Wordsworth, a professor of environmental science and engineering at Harvard.1