Scientists find ‘Earth-like’ planet again with Kepler satellite

Scientists have found three planets orbiting a star near our solar system. One of the planets is in a favorable orbit: that is, liquid water can exist and thus the conditions for life may be present there.

Researchers from multiple countries contributed to the study, which was led by the University of Arizona. It is the star named EPIC 201367065. It is 150 light-years away, making it one of the closest stars to have Earth-like planets in its gravitational field. The three pieces have a size that is in the order of magnitude of the Earth.

Most interesting is the planet furthest from the star. This is located in the so-called goldilocks zone: a term that indicates that the conditions are good enough for liquid water. That means that life could potentially thrive on the planet. Further research will have to show whether water can actually be found. The scientists want to see if there is an atmosphere that is rich in hydrogen. Calculations have already shown that the size of the planet is about one and a half times that of the Earth. The light intensity on the planet is about 1.4 times what the Earth receives from the sun.

The planets were found with the Kepler space telescope. This was repaired some time ago with a ‘trick’ after it turned out that the satellite could no longer keep its balance. The search for exoplanets has resumed since mid-last year: according to the scientists, the recent find is evidence that the new Kepler mission, called K2, is therefore bearing fruit.

The Kepler space telescope has already found many exoplanets, or planets that orbit a star other than our sun. Some of them have earth-like properties. Eventually, scientists hope to pick up on signs of alien life.

An artist’s impression of Kepler-186f, the first Earth-like planet in the goldilocks zone found by Kepler. This is not the planet found by the University of Arizona team.