New Planet is Earth's Size But Too Cold
Posted on January 28, 2006
Astronomers continue to hunt for Earth-like planets. This time they got the size right but the planet is freezing cold with a surface temperature of -220C. The Times Online reports that the planet has been named OGLE-2005-BLG-390Lb.
The planet, which has been given the unglamorous name OGLE-2005-BLG-390Lb, is considered an unlikely candidate for life, as it has a surface temperature of -220C (-364F) that precludes the presence of the liquid water thought necessary to sustain organisms.As we continue to explore our galaxy with equipment and techniques that are constantly improving we should eventually find many planets that are Earth's size. Hopefully, some of them will be much warmer than OGLE-2005-BLG-390Lb.Nevertheless, the discovery is an important breakthrough in the search for extra-terrestrial life, as it suggests that small, rocky planets like the Earth are relatively common around other stars.
If similar worlds are found to exist orbiting in the "habitable zones" of solar systems with suitably moderate temperatures, they would be prime candidates for supporting extra-terrestrial life.
Most of the exoplanets discovered to date are gas giants, similar in size or larger than Jupiter.