Fun Solar Facts
The solar system as we know it is not only home to our eight main planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune; but outer space is much more extensive than we've ever imagined. There are about 3,875 planetary systems, and among those systems live many extrasolar planets. An extrasolar or exoplanet planet is a planet outside the Solar System. The first possible evidence of an exoplanet was noted in 1917. Thousands of extrasolar planets have been discovered since then, leaving many space lovers to wonder; "Are there any other planets like earth?". According to astronomers, here are some of the most "habitable" extrasolar planets.
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Proxima Cen b [4 Light Years], Kapteyn b*[13 Light Years], GJ 66 Cc [22 Light Years], GJ 667 Cf* [22 Light Years], GJ 667 Ce* [22 Light Years], TRAPPIST-1 e [39 Light Years], TRAPPIST- 1 f [39 Light Years], TRAPPIST-1 g [39 Light Years], LHS 1140 b [41 Light Years], Kepler-186 f [561 Light Years] Kepler-1229 b [770 Light Years], Kepler-1652 b [822 Light Years] Kepler-442 b [1115 Light Years] and last but not least Kepler-62 f [1200 Light Years].
Here are a few popular extrasolar planets that were featured on an extrasolar planets poster.
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Are you afraid of the dark?
Meet The extrasolar planet TrES-2 b.
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Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle |