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| Illustration: Astronomers discover a nearby super Earth, but is it habitable or glacial? |
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A potentially habitable “super-Earth” has been discovered just 31 light-years away from our solar system, astronomers announced Wednesday [7/31/19].
The planet, named GJ 357 d, is about six times larger than Earth and orbits the dwarf sun GJ 357, much smaller than our own, every 55.7 days.
The international team of astronomers that discovered the planet said in a news release that it could “provide Earth-like conditions.”
“With a thick atmosphere, the planet GJ 357 d could maintain liquid water on its surface like Earth, and we could pick out signs of life with telescopes that will soon be online,” Lisa Kaltenegger, the director of the Carl Sagan Institute at Cornell U. and associate professor in astronomy, said in a statement. More
“With a thick atmosphere, the planet GJ 357 d could maintain liquid water on its surface like Earth, and we could pick out signs of life with telescopes that will soon be online,” Lisa Kaltenegger, the director of the Carl Sagan Institute at Cornell U. and associate professor in astronomy, said in a statement. More
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