25
Aug 16

Planet Found in Habitable Zone Around Nearest Star

Source: ESO Science Release eso1629

eso1629aArtist's impression of the planet orbiting Proxima Centauri.
Image credits: ESO/M. Kornmesser.

Astronomers using ESO telescopes and other facilities have found clear evidence of a planet orbiting the closest star to Earth, Proxima Centauri. The long-sought world, designated Proxima b, orbits its cool red parent star every 11 days and has a temperature suitable for liquid water to exist on its surface. This rocky world is a little more massive than the Earth and is the closest exoplanet to us — and it may also be the closest possible abode for life outside the Solar System. A paper describing this milestone finding will be published in the journal Nature on 25 August 2016. (learn more)

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