NASA has discovered a new exoplanet similar to Earth and located in the habitable zone of its solar system. That’s also the area where liquid water has the necessary conditions to form, which obviously leads to the exciting possibility for life to exist on the exoplanet as well.
The planet in question is called TOI 700 e, and it was discovered by using data from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) of NASA, according to the space agency’s official website.
The good news is still far from over! The TOI 700 e exoplanet is almost the same size as Earth (95%, to be more precise), and it’s likely a solid object, not a gaseous one such as Saturn or Jupiter.
Three other planets were previously discovered by astronomers in the same solar system where TOI 700 e exists. The host star is known as TOI 700, it qualifies as a red dwarf, and it’s located a bit more than 100 light-years away from Earth in the Dorado constellation.
Emily Gilbert from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, who also led the work, explained:
This is one of only a few systems with multiple, small, habitable-zone planets that we know of,
That makes the TOI 700 system an exciting prospect for additional follow up. Planet e is about 10% smaller than planet d, so the system also shows how additional TESS observations help us find smaller and smaller worlds.
The Dorado constellation is located in the southern hemisphere and was named after the dolphinfish, also known as dorado in Spanish, because of its shape resembling a dolphinfish. It’s not the brightest constellation out there, but it’s definitely worth seeking out on a clear night. It’s home to some real gems, like the Gamma Doradus star, which is a pulsating variable star that shines like a lighthouse in the night sky.
