New discovery by Swiss astronomy team

[gryphonsegg]

What's only 3.6 times as heavy as Earth and 36 light-years away AND in the Goldilocks zone of the star it orbits? HD 85512b , that's what! Note that it's NOT a gas giant like the first exoplanets to be observed from Earth. 3.6g might seem like a mighty strong gravitational pull, but that's quite non-crushing compared to other recent exoplanet discoveries. Now that our technology can detect a planet that small, it might not be long before we find one whose gravity is, along with its temperature, just right.

Via Shakesville

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