Over the years, scientists have been working towards finding life on other planets and have found many planets dispersed across the galaxy that could apparently support life. It seems like their hard work is paying off. Recently, in a remarkable discovery, researchers have confirmed the presence of a rocky planet just outside our solar system which could possibly sustain life. Yeah, you heard that right!
According to a study produced by the astronomers of the Pale Red Dot campaign, a new planet has been discovered. It is called Proxima b. This potentially habitable planet orbits the star Proxima Centauri, the closest star to the sun
It has about 1.3 times more mass than Earth and a year on this planet is about 11.2 days long.
It is being said that this earth-like planet is the nearest planet outside our solar system that we’ll ever find. Yes, it is only 4.2 light years away. The second nearest potentially habitable planet after Proxima b is Gliese 667 Cc and is 23.62 light years away, which is way more distant than Proxima b.
However, a probe launched now would take around 70,000 years to reach Proxima b.
