LONDON: The Kepler Mission of NASA recently found a planet which is quite similar to the Earth. This planet is located 1400 light years away from us. This mission was launched by NASA in order to identify other planets which were similar to the Earth and were revolving around stars in their habitable zones.
The discovery is of a planet which has now been named Kepler 452b. This planet completes one revolution of its sun in three hundred and eighty five days. But the mass of this planet is 5 times that of the Earth and its size is 60% larger. The planet is also orbiting a star which is much older as well as hotter than the sun.
As per researchers, the chances of this planet having a rocky surface are very high. The thick atmosphere around it also increases the chances of water being found on its surface.
Kepler 452b is one of the best candidates as far as planets with conditions need to support human life are concerned according to Jon Jenkins, the data analysis lead for the Ames Researcher Center of NASA located in Moffet Field, California. This planet may also be able to help researchers predict what is going to happen to our planet after 1.5 billion years.
A scientist from the SETI institute, Doug Caldwell, who is also part of the Kepler Mission said that the runaway greenhouse phase of this planet seems to have evaporated any of the oceans which may have been present on the surface of the planet.
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