NASA Finds Planet Similar to Earth (PHOTOS)

Society | July 31, 2019, Wednesday // 10:18
Bulgaria: NASA Finds Planet Similar to Earth (PHOTOS) Pictures: NASA

TESS has found 24 new planets.


NASA's TESS (The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite is a space telescope for NASA's Explorers program) has discovered a total of three planets around a star, located about 73 light-years from our own solar system, and one has a composition comparable to Earth's, according to BGNES.

NASA has revealed that the telescope has discovered three exoplanets that scientists believe will be "among the most curious targets for future research."

All three new worlds are orbiting an old star just a stone’s throw from our own solar system. The star, called TOI 270, is surrounded by a trio of planets, including one rocky world and a pair of “sub-Neptune” worlds that scientists are eager to learn more about.

TOI 270 b is the closest planet to its host star, and it’s thought to be a bit larger than Earth. It’s incredibly close to its star, completing an orbit every three-and-a-half Earth days, but because TOI 207 isn’t as intense as our own Sun, the planet isn’t quite as hot as you might expect.

A NASA study identifies the other two worlds as "mini-Neptune," but researchers say additional data is needed because these planets are similar to those observed in our own solar system. TOI 270 c and TOI 270 d, respectively, are 2.4 and 2.1 times larger than Earth, respectively. The former is estimated to weigh about seven times the mass of the earth, while the second is approximately five times the mass of the earth.

 

Going forward, astronomers hope to continue to observe the system, located just 73 light-years away, and potentially find even more exoplanets hiding out there. If there are rocky worlds at a greater distance from the star, the chances of those having habitable conditions would be significantly greater.

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Tags: NASA, space, new planets, Earth

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