Astronomers reported on Wednesday, the discovery on a Earth-like planet which has the same mass and is of the same size of Earth orbiting Alpha Centauri star.
The Alpha Centauri star, the closest star to the Sun is only 4.3 light years away from Earth. According to cosmic terms, this star can be called Earth's "next door neighbor." European astronomers reported the discovery of an earth-like planet which has the same mass and is the same size of Earth orbiting Alpha Centauri on Wednesday.
The mass and the size of both Earth and the new found planet are the only similarities between the two. All possibility of life in the planet has been ruled out as the planet is too close to the sun. Hence, it is but obvious that the planet will be hotter than Mercury as well.
"If there are any inhabitants there, they're made of asbestos," joked SETI Institute astronomer Seth Shostak.
"This result represents a major step towards the detection of a twin Earth in the immediate vicinity of the sun. We live in exciting times!" said lead researcher Xavier Dumusque.
Geoff Marcy of the University of California Berkeley was excited about the scientific significance the new discovery had. "This is a historic discovery," he wrote in an email. "There could well be an Earth-size planet in that Goldilocks sweet spot, not too cold and not too hot, making Alpha Centauri a compelling target to search for intelligent life."
Charbonneau said when it comes to looking for interesting exoplanets "the single most important consideration is the distance from us to the star" and this one is as close as you can get. He said astronomers usually impress the public by talking about how far away things are, but this is not, at least in cosmic terms.
