An international team of astronomers from the Astrophysics Institute of the Canary Islands has discovered two exoplanets near the solar system, located in the habitable zone of their stars. Results of the study published In the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics.
The planets were named GJ 1002 b and GJ 1002. They orbit the red dwarf GJ 1002, located 16 light-years from the solar system. These planets have the same mass as Earth, their orbits are in the star’s habitable zone, which means that conditions on the surface of these planets are favorable for the emergence of near-Earth and Earth-like life.
It takes about 10 days for GJ 1002 b to make a complete orbit around the star, and GJ 1002 c – 21 days. The red dwarf is a small and faint star, so its habitable zone is slightly shifted and closer to the star.
The team will continue to study planets in their future work.