42 light years away, there’s a super Earth

Astronomers have discovered a new Earth-like planet that is larger than our own and may be more than half covered with water, according to a study published on Wednesday in the science journal Nature. The so-called "super Earth" is about 42 light years away in another solar system and has a radius nearly 2.7 times larger than that of our planet, according to the study by the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics.The planet orbits every 38 hours around a small, faint star that was first spotted by eight ground-based telescopes no larger than those used by amateur astronomers. The discovery of the planet, called GJ 1214b, represents a "major step forward" in the search for worlds similar to the Earth, added the University of California’s Geoffrey Marcy. The "newfound world" is too hot to sustain life as we know it, said the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics in a statement. You would not want to live there. Besides the heat 200 degrees Celsius on the ocean surface the planet is probably cloaked in a dark fog of superheated steam and other gases. Its density suggests however it "is composed of about three-fourths water and other ices and one fourth-rock," it said. "There are also tantalising hints that the planet has a gaseous atmosphere." Its temperature is estimated at between 280 and 120 degrees Celsius with its host star about one-fifth the size of the Sun, according to the scientists. "Despite its hot temperature, this appears to be a waterworld," says Zachory Berta, a graduate student who first spotted hints of the planet’s presence. READ MORE…

• Fog returns to capital, several flights delayed
• Respite to people as mercury rises in Himachal
• Fog returns in Delhi, disrupts flight and delays trains
• Fresh snow in Himachal, hoteliers cheer
• Rain adds to the chill in Delhi, fog forecast Thursday
• two moons on 27th august
• Black Hole Pictures
• Modest Lunar Eclipse Monday Morning
• mars pictures
• earthquake in pune