Meet Ross 128b, a planet with features similar to our “pale blue dot,” which is located a mere 11 light years from our solar system.
The most exciting thing about scientists locating this giant, rotating sphere in the sky is that it possesses some of the qualities that a planet must have if it can sustain life (i.e. it is warm enough to support life, and Ross 128b is comparable in size to Earth).
Who knows, maybe we do have some extraterrestrial brethren 11 light years from our sun.
What’s interesting about Ross 128b is that unlike how Earth revolves around a sun, it whirls around a red dwarf star which emits less heat than the sun, but is stationed closer to the spinning planet than our massive ball of heat is to the Earth.
However, scientists have some detective work ahead of them, because given that they cannot directly observe the planet from this great a distance, they cannot determine whether or not this planet has a breathable atmosphere, or liquid water for that matter.
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