The newly - discovered Kepler-10b is , in term of size , the most Earth - similar exoplanet yet attain , and the first all reassert uncovering of a jolting planet around another lead . This is very in force word for the search for Earth ’s Gemini .
NASA ’s Kepler Mission began focus most of its resources on the hunt for small exoplanets last year , and already we ’re witnessing the exciting result . NASA has resign this video explain the unexampled finding , in which Kepler surrogate loss leader Natalie Batalha gives the lowdown on the new planet :
So how did we find this small - sized satellite ? The Kepler investigation has an incredibly precise photometer which can measure the minute changes in a star ’s brightness as a major planet passes in front of it . This method has prove very useful in spotting larger exoplanets , but Kepler is the first NASA mission with a light meter powerful enough to pick up on the cosmos of much smaller , dry land - sized planet . Kepler-10b , at just 1.4 metre the size of it of Earth , is by far the smallest exoplanet we ’ve yet unwrap .
unluckily , Kepler-10b does n’t fit any of the other criteria for a potentially habitable planet . It ’s 20 clip closer to its superstar than Mercury is to ours , placing it far from the habitable zone that would grant life to survive there . Indeed , Kepler-10b races around its asterisk , completing an cranial orbit every 0.84 days . And , though it ’s only 1.4 time the size of it of Earth , Kepler-10b is a dense world , with a aggregative 4.6 prison term that of Earth and an average density similar to an iron dummy .
Still , Kepler should be capable of detecting rocky planets inside the inhabitable zona , and the discovery of Kepler-10b suggest that we really will be able to find a planet out there that is just like Earth , both in terms of size and location . Kepler scientist Douglas Hudgins place this new find into position :
“ The discovery of Kepler 10 - b is a significant milepost in the search for planet similar to our own . Although this major planet is not in the habitable zone , the exciting find showcases the kinds of discoveries made potential by the mission and the hope of many more to come . ”
[ NASA ]
AstronomyNASAScienceSpace
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