Posted on by Evan Gough

A Super-Earth (and Possible Earth-Sized) Exoplanet Found in the Habitable Zone

Artist depiction of the surface of a super-Earth orbiting a red dwarf. Credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser

Astronomers have found a new Super-Earth orbiting an M-dwarf (red dwarf) star about 137 light-years away. The planet is named TOI-715b, and it’s about 1.55 Earth’s radius and is inside the star’s habitable zone. There’s also another planetary candidate in the system. It’s Earth-sized, and if it’s confirmed, it will be the smallest habitable zone planet TESS has discovered so far.

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Posted on by Evan Gough

TESS Finds Eight More Super-Earths

This artist’s impression shows a Super-Earth orbiting a Sun-like star. Super-Earths are more massive than Earth yet lighter than ice giants like Neptune and Uranus, and can be made of gas, rock or a combination of both. They are between twice the size of Earth and up to 10 times its mass. Image Credit: ESO

NASA’s Kepler spacecraft has discovered most of the confirmed exoplanets that we know of. But its successor, TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite), is catching up. New research announces the validation of eight more TESS candidates, and they’re all Super-Earths.

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