Scientists looking for planets hosting life have discovered one that they believe hosts water and is strikingly similar to Earth. This body is only 20 light-years away from us and is orbiting a sun-like star. It is likely to have an atmosphere on the same scale as ours and is a super-Earth that has been named HD 20794 d.

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It completed one orbit of its star in 647 days, a number within the habitable zone, which means it has a high likelihood of hosting water. The discovery has been confirmed by Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) and the Universidad de La Laguna (ULL). The super-Earth is orbiting in the habitable zone of its star, HD 20794.

The revelation follows 20 years of observations and is expected to open the doors to studying the atmospheres of Earth-like planets in greater detail. The findings were published recently in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics.

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The quest for finding life beyond Earth is based on the premise of finding bodies that lie in the habitable zones of Sun-like stars. Scientists can also learn about similar conditions present on Earth that helped birth life on our planet. 

This is not the first planet to have been found orbiting HD 20794. The star, only slightly smaller than our Sun, has been of interest to scientists for years who have already found two other planets orbiting it that have also been termed super-Earths.

About the new super-Earth

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HD 20794 d, the new super-Earth, has a mass six times that of Earth. It completes one orbit around its star in 647 days. This puts it in the habitable zone, as it is only about 40 days less than Mars’ orbit around the Sun.

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Planets lying in this zone are at a perfect distance from their star, which is apt for conditions that facilitate the existence of water.

The planet’s distance from its star and the proximity of the system make it the perfect candidate to be studied using the ELT, ESO’s 40-meter telescope, or for future missions by NASA and ESA.

"This is the perfect type of planet for characterizing terrestrial planet atmospheres with next-generation instruments and missions," explains Nicola Nari, a researcher at Lightbridges SL, a doctoral student at the Universidad de La Laguna and the study’s lead author. 

'Very few similar planets'

Alejandro Suárez Mascareño, a researcher at the IAC and co-author of the work, says, "We know of very few similar planets." 

"This will surely be one of the first we can study," he added.

However, scientists are not sure if it can host life because of a number of reasons. They don't believe it can be a "second home for humanity" because of its high mass and elliptical orbit. 

However, Alejandro Suárez Mascareño, a researcher at the IAC and co-author of the work, believes that "its position and peculiar orbit give us a unique opportunity to study how the conditions for habitability vary over time."