NASA’s Kepler Telescope discovers four Earth-like planets

Scientists from National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) have by the help of Kepler telescope discovered four planets that may just have the right condition to sustain life. By using all the data available astronomers have searched 100 undiscovered alien planets on Monday.

A total of four planets is seen orbiting the star system called K2-72 and have conditions and surface similar to Earth. The diameters of the planet are between 20 and 50 percent more massive than Earth and takes 51/2 to 24 days to orbit their sun.

The similar condition and the radiation level of two of the planets make scientists wonder if there is a possibility of life on the distant planet. Once researchers get a closer picture of the four exoplanets, it will raise the question of whether the condition is favorable enough for a living being to survive there.

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Researchers used data not only from NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope and but other observatories on Earth to confirm that the total number of planets found to be outside our solar system is approximately 3,368. But what surprises the researchers even though the planets are orbiting nearly very close to the sun but still the possibility of life exists there.

The other factor contributing towards the belief of life on the alien planet is that the host star is much dimmer than our own which indicates it has a similar level of radiation to earth.

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Talking about this latest development Steve Howell, project scientist for the K2 mission at NASA said –

The K2 mission highlight the fact that the discovery of exoplanets will give us a clear picture of the vast universe. Also, regular examination of stars along the ecliptic has helped us to find many new planets.

In its earlier mission, Kepler was only able to survey one part of the sky in the northern hemisphere, but the K2 mission has provided with an ecliptic view about both the north and south hemisphere.

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Nitin Agarwal

Nitin started PC-Tablet because of his keen interest in space research, technology, and gadgets. He is an avid reader, technology enthusiast, and like to explore new places. His passion for knowledge keeps him running all the time.