Discovery of Earth's 'twin' outside the Solar System

Scientists have just discovered a planet that is nearly the same size as Earth and has the potential to harbor life.

ABC News quoted scientists at the European Southern Observatory saying they found an exoplanet named Ross 128 b. It is located 11 light years away from the Solar System.

However, this distance is getting smaller because Ross 128 b is moving and will be the closest star to Earth in 79,000 years.

Simulated image of Ross 128 b. Image: European Southern Observatory.

Ross 128 b orbits a red dwarf star called Ross 128 every 9.9 days. The star has a cool climate and has more than half the surface temperature of the sun, leading scientists to believe that Ross 128 b could potentially harbor life.

"Many red dwarf stars, including Proxima Centauri, emit ultraviolet or X-ray light, making planets orbiting them uninhabitable. However, Ross 128 is not like that," said scientists from the European Southern Observatory.

To conclude about life on Ross 128 b, experts need to deploy a series of experiments in the future. In the near future, they will use super large telescopes to observe the atmosphere of this planet.

Temperature is just one of many factors that determine the habitability of a planet. Geology, atmosphere, and water capacity are also important factors.

Previously, in February, NASA announced a shocking discovery when it said it found at least 7 planets the size of Earth and 40 light years away.

Exoplanets are the big hope of scientists in searching for traces of life beyond Earth. They are particularly interested in planets that have a distance from their central star similar to the distance from Earth to the Sun.

According to Zing