TESS finds potentially habitable super-Earth 31 light-years away

4 Aug 2019

TESS finds potentially habitable super-Earth 31 light-years away

TESS finds potentially habitable super-Earth 31 light-years awayNASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) has recently spotted three new, exciting exoplanets. They are only 31 light-years away from Earth.
A study describing the three planets was published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics.
These newly-discovered exoplanets (planets orbiting stars outside our solar system) were discovered orbiting an M-dwarf star, called GJ 357. This star is in the Hydra constellation.

GJ 357 is 40% cooler than our Sun.
 	It is only about a third of our Sun's mass and size.

What do we know about the three new exoplanets orbiting GJ 357?
The first exoplanet discovered around the star was GJ 357 b.

GJ 357 b is 22% larger and 80% bigger than Earth, making it a 'super-Earth'.
 	It is very close to its sun and completes one orbit around the star every 3.9 days.
 	Researchers estimate that it has an average temperature of 490°Fahrenheit.

The second exoplanet is GJ 357 d

GJ 357 d could be the most interesting because it is at a distance from the star, suitable enough to support liquid water on the surface.
 	It is 6.1 times bigger than Earth. Scientists believe that if it has a suitable atmosphere, this planet could support life.
 	It orbits the star every 55.7 days and has a temperature of  -64°Fahrenheit.

The third exoplanet is GJ 357 c.

It is 3.4 times the size of Earth and orbits around its sun every 9.1 days.
 	The temperature of the planet can reach 260°Fahrenheit.

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NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) has recently spotted three new, exciting exoplanets. They are only 31 light-years away from Earth. A study describing the […]

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