Astronomers confirm existence of earth-like planet 600 light years away
06 Dec 2011
Astronomers have confirmed the existence of an earth-like planet in the "habitable zone" around a star similar to our own sun.
The planet, Kepler 22-b, is 600 light-years away from earth, measures 2.4 times the size of earth, and has a temperature of about 22 degrees C.
According to experts, the planet is the closest confirmed planet yet to one like ours – an ''Earth 2.0.''
However, the team has not yet been able to determine the composition of Kepler 22-b whether it is made up of rock, gas or liquid.
During the conference at which the result was announced, the Kepler team also said that it had identified 1,094 new candidate planets. This nearly doubles the number of potential far-flung worlds, the telescope had uncovered so far.
Kepler 22-b was among 54 exoplanet candidates in habitable zones reported by the Kepler team in February. It is only the first to be formally confirmed using other telescopes.
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