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Astronomers discover new Earth-like planet
London, Jan. 26 (Xinhuanet) -- Astronomers reported on Wednesday that they have discovered a new Earth-like planet outside the solar system.
The new exoplanet, named OGLE-2005-BLG-390Lb, is about 28,000 light years from Earth.
About five times the size of Earth, the star lies in the constellation Sagittarius, close to the center of the Milky Way.
There was little chance the planet could sustain life since its temperature could be no more than minus 364 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 220 degrees Celsius), the astronomers said.
The planet, which appears to be icy and rocky, orbits its mother star about three times the distance between Earth and the Sun.
The finding was reported in Wednesday's edition of the British weekly science journal Nature by a team of researchers from 12 countries.
Unlike most known exoplanets, this one was found by a different technique called "microlensing," which uses the fact that a celestial body's gravity bends light like a cosmic glass lens, according to the researchers.
If a planet and its star pass between Earth and a more distant star, this "microlensing" effect temporarily boosts the brightness of the more distant star. This phenomenon was predicted by Albert Einstein in 1912. Enditem
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-01/26/content_4102608.htm
London, Jan. 26 (Xinhuanet) -- Astronomers reported on Wednesday that they have discovered a new Earth-like planet outside the solar system.
The new exoplanet, named OGLE-2005-BLG-390Lb, is about 28,000 light years from Earth.
About five times the size of Earth, the star lies in the constellation Sagittarius, close to the center of the Milky Way.
There was little chance the planet could sustain life since its temperature could be no more than minus 364 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 220 degrees Celsius), the astronomers said.
The planet, which appears to be icy and rocky, orbits its mother star about three times the distance between Earth and the Sun.
The finding was reported in Wednesday's edition of the British weekly science journal Nature by a team of researchers from 12 countries.
Unlike most known exoplanets, this one was found by a different technique called "microlensing," which uses the fact that a celestial body's gravity bends light like a cosmic glass lens, according to the researchers.
If a planet and its star pass between Earth and a more distant star, this "microlensing" effect temporarily boosts the brightness of the more distant star. This phenomenon was predicted by Albert Einstein in 1912. Enditem
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-01/26/content_4102608.htm
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