In the Milky Way Galaxy, about three-fourths of the stars are M dwarfs. But there’s a deadly catch. New research indicates that M dwarfs which are prime targets for astronomers in the search for extraterrestrial life, may have lost their window of opportunity at hosting life because of intense heat during their formative years. M dwarfs, also known as red dwarfs, are the smallest type of hydrogen-burning stars and are the most common stars and the coolest main-sequence stars in the universe.
Planets Billions of Years Old
The possibility of an ancient technological civilization billions of years old is what intrigues astronomers –the heaviest red dwarfs have lifetimes of tens of billions of years, while the smallest have lifetimes of trillions of years into the future. By comparison, the universe is only 13.8 billion years old. These dim red dwarfs will be the last stars shining in the universe.