An Earth-like exoplanet located about 146 light-years away has been discovered by astronomers

For several years, astronomers have been searching for exoplanets in order to find life elsewhere in the universe. And while many celestial objects have been discovered until now, a new discovery could change everything. Indeed, an exoplanet similar to Earth and located about 146 light-years away has been spotted in the Kepler space telescope data.

This discovery, revealed in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, highlights strange similarities with our planet. Astronomers estimate that this exoplanet, named HD 137010 b, is located in the habitable zone of its star, which is an orange dwarf.

Furthermore, it could orbit its star in just 355 days and is only 6% larger than Earth. However, its star is less luminous than the Sun, and the surface temperature of HD 137010 b is minus 68 degrees Celsius (approximately minus 90 degrees Fahrenheit), which is more similar to the conditions on Mars. But if its atmosphere is dense and composed of carbon dioxide, this could warm its surface. 

As a result, this discovery, which was made thanks to the Planet Hunters project, could change the search for exoplanets. Indeed, today, more than 6,000 exoplanets have been discovered, but the vast majority of them are gas giants or too close to their star. And some discoveries are too far away to be studied properly. Therefore, further studies will need to be conducted to learn more about this new celestial object.