Newest Exoplanet

If you haven’t heard by now, our intrepid scientists have found yet another planet orbiting a star, a nearby star, a very nearby star, in fact, the closest star to us – Proxima (part of the Alpha Centauri system) at just 4.25 light year from here. Still a bit of a journey, but the closest one yet. Being the star is a red dwarf, it’s not horribly hot or bright, but this planet is in the “Goldilocks Zone” for liquid water. Probably not life as we know it, because it’s like our moon – tidally locked so the same side faces the star at all times, making one side hot and radioactive, the other cold and dark. But it’s a start. Enjoy the graphic!