Raindrops Size Help Identify the Potential Habitable Planets

Soon, humankind may set foot on another habitable planet where Raindrops could be found. Except for one thing, the planet may look very different than Earth that is Rain. JGR published a paper recently in which Harvard researchers found raindrops to be remarkably similar across the different planetary environments. There is similarity even on planets drastically different like Earth and Jupiter.

The research shows the behavior of Raindrops on other planets. It is the key to reveal ancient climate on planets like Mars but identifying potentially habitable planets outside our solar system. Kaitlyn Loftus, lead author and graduate student in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, said, “The lifecycle of clouds is really important when we think about planet habitability.”

She added, “But clouds and precipitation are really complicated and too complex to model completely. We’re looking for simpler ways to understand how clouds evolve, and a first step is whether cloud droplets evaporate in the atmosphere or make it to the surface as rain.”

Robin Woodsworth, Associate Professor of Environmental Science and Engineering at Harvard, claims that the humble Raindrops is a vital component of planets’ precipitation cycle. He says if the individual Raindrops is understood and studied, it can be presented in complex climate models. An essential aspect of Raindrops behavior is whether it makes it to the surface or not.

The size of the Raindrops also matters. Atmosphere plays a significant role in planetary climate. Too big drops will break apart due to insufficient surface tension. It does not matter if it is methane, water, or superheated liquid iron as on an exoplanet called WASP-76b.