New Planet Kepler 22b Sparks A Hope Of Life Beyond Earth

NASA’s Kepler space telescope discovered a new planet that has Earth-like characteristics -circling a yellow star similar to Earth’s sun and 600 light years away.

The most important thing about this world, called Kepler-22b for now, is that it’s in the so-called Goldilocks zone around its host star. Its surface temperature is estimated at an average of 72 degrees, which means that it would be possible to create liquid water a necessity for life.

“We are certain that it is in the habitable zone and if it has a surface, it ought to have a nice temperature,” said Bill Borucki, the Kepler principal investigator at NASA’s Ames Research Center.

With human technology it would take about 1,000 years to get there so don’t think we’re relocating any time soon.

“We’re getting closer and closer to discovering the so-called ‘Goldilocks planet,’” Pete Worden, director of NASA’s Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., said during a press conference today.

It’s always good to know that there are planets out in space that may be able to support other life.  This once again raises the question, are we alone?

Scientists say they have found more than 1,000 new planet candidates in addition to Keplar 22-b.

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