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NASA Discovers the First Earth-Sized Planet in Habitable Zone of Sun-Like Star

The next step will be to try to determine if it is rocky, and then if there's water.

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It's been about twenty years since the discovery of the first definitive proof that there are planets outside our solar system, and today NASA has revealed that it has found the first near-Earth-sized planet in the habitable zone of a star similar to our Sun. This means that it has the highest probability of supporting life of any exoplanet NASA has found so far.

Called Kepler-452b, the planet was discovered by NASA's Kepler telescope. It orbits the star Kepler-452, which is about 1400 light-years away from our solar system. The planet is 60 percent larger in diameter than Earth--meaning it is still near-Earth-sized--and it orbits the Sun within the "habitable zone," a range of orbital distances that would allow for a planet to have liquid water on its surface.

Kepler-452 is a G2-type star, putting it in the same classification as our Sun. It has the same temperature and is only slightly brighter and larger.

Earth compared to an artist's representation of Kepler-452b
Earth compared to an artist's representation of Kepler-452b

Notably, the star is 1.5 billion years older than the Sun--meaning that the planet has been around much longer than Earth. The Kepler Mission's data analysis lead, Jon Jenkins, said that this could have huge implications. "It's awe-inspiring to consider that this planet has spent 6 billion years in the habitable zone of its star; longer than Earth. That’s substantial opportunity for life to arise, should all the necessary ingredients and conditions for life exist on this planet."

The next step for NASA is to determine whether or not the planet has the requisite composition to support life. Analysis of Kepler-452's solar system suggest that the planet is rocky and not made of gas, further increasing the potential for the planet to support life.

NASA has also found nine other "planet candidates"--bodies in solar systems that are potentially planets--that have a high probability of being Earth-sized and in the habitable zones of Sun-sized stars.

The Kepler Mission works in conjunction with the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Life (SETI) which recently received a huge funding boost of $100 million, paid by a Russian billionaire and endorsed by Stephen Hawking.

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