Kepler Space Telescope Sighted New Exoplanet Like Earth In The Neighboring Solar System

The Kepler space telescope is used since long to search for exoplanet like Earth by studying the stars and their light patterns, instead of directly studying the exoplanet. The new and revamped Project Blue will now make use of the Kepler space telescope to directly focus on the exoplanet and find out details about it.

Exoplanet like Earth refers to the planets found in a different solar system and is not barren. Instead, it will have many life forms and an oxygen- and nitrogen-rich atmosphere.

Earlier, the Kepler space telescope used to study wobbling and dimming of the light coming off the stars, which may be indications of orbiting exoplanet like Earth. It was the method of studying exoplanets by following their footprints. Now the scientists are going to follow the direct approach and try to photograph the exoplanets and study its nature and habitability.

The photographs may act as the basis of further detailed investigations, which will involve the use of Kepler Space telescope in tracking the light reflection patterns and atmosphere of the exoplanet, and if it does, scientists can even predict the composition of its atmosphere. This will be highly helpful in predicting whether the particular exoplanet like Earth hosts life or not, Space.com reported.

It is also speculated that the Kepler space telescope with other advanced imagery techniques may help in determining the approximate mass of the exoplanet, which will further help find out whether the planet is a gaseous mass or the exoplanet like Earth is a solid mass with rock, soil and water, essential for the origin and sustenance of life.

As the team of scientists is making an effort to find exoplanet like Earth (the blue dot) in different galaxies and solar systems, by making use of the Kepler space telescope, hence, the project was named as Project Blue. If the captured photographs show blue colored surface, it is an indication of presence of water, which is the very essence of life.