Earth-like, possibly inhabitable planet, discovered

Photo: AP photo

Earth-like, possibly inhabitable planet, discovered. 52620.jpeg

A group of researchers announced on Thursday that they discovered the most Earth-like planet in the history of studies, reports CBS News. The astounding discovery was made with the help of Kepler telescope.

The planet orbits in the habitable zone of its parent star at a distance of about 500 light-years away from the constellation of Cygnus. The unnamed planet is one of the five worlds orbiting dwarf star Kepler-186f.

The new planet, called Kepler-186f, is approximately the size of the Earth. The planet makes one circle around its star in approximately 130 days, and the planet is located in the so-called "zone of life." This means that in theory, there can be life on the planet.

The scientists, however, do not yet know whether Kepler-186f is a habitable planet, if it has atmosphere and how it is exposed to solar radiation and other space factors. However, currently this is the first exoplanet that possesses a livable size and distance from its star.

Space Telescope Kepler is a NASA astronomy satellite, launched into orbit in 2009. This is the first spacecraft designed specifically to search for planets outside the solar system.