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“Simulation of an Image: NASA/JPL-CALTECH’s ‘Super Earth'”
Placed in the category of “super Earth,” this planet is one of the few celestial bodies with size and orbit resembling that of our own planet, as reported by Gizmodo.
The discovery team, comprised of astronomers from the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, explains that this planet falls within the mass range between Mars and Earth.
Its central star has a mass only 10% that of the Sun, and the orbit of this “super Earth” is situated between Mars and our planet, with its year equivalent to 617 days.
Dr. Herrera Martin, the lead author of the report, refers to this discovery as “one million new planets in one.”
The “super Earth” was unveiled through the use of three astronomical telescopes in Chile, Australia, and South Africa, each capable of measuring light emissions from approximately 100 million stars every 15 minutes, according to Assistant Professor Michael Albrow from the University of Canterbury.
“Dr. Martin was the first to notice the peculiar shape of light emissions from a star system. He spent months analyzing the data on computers before concluding that it’s a star system with a low-mass planet,” Professor Albrow explained.
According to NASA, while astronomers still possess limited information about super Earths, it’s clear that they do not necessarily reflect ideal conditions for thriving life, at least from a human perspective.
For instance, a super Earth named Kepler-22b is a true water world, with oceans covering its entire surface, while another planet with scorching temperatures could melt and vaporize metals.
Earlier in January, researchers from the University of California, Riverside (USA), also announced the discovery of a super Earth with a surface temperature around 1,800 degrees Celsius, orbiting one of the oldest stars in the Milky Way, according to CNN.