Habitable Zones: Where Life Might Thrive in Space

A habitable zone is the region around a star where liquid water could exist on a planet’s surface.
It’s often called the “Goldilocks Zone”—not too hot, not too cold.
Earth lies in the Sun’s habitable zone, making life possible here.
Too close to a star, water boils away; too far, it freezes.
The size of a star determines how wide and far its habitable zone extends.
Red dwarf stars have small habitable zones, often very close to the star.
Giant stars have wide zones, but their short lifespans make life less likely.
Habitability also depends on atmosphere, magnetic fields, and geology—not distance alone.
Thousands of exoplanets have been found, some sitting inside their stars’ habitable zones.
Studying habitable zones helps guide the search for alien life in the cosmos.