The candidate planet, named HD 137010 b, was identified by an international team led by University of Southern Queensland researcher Dr Alexander Venner.

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Australian astronomers have discovered a potentially habitable planet 150 light years away.
The candidate planet, named HD 137010 b, was identified by an international team led by University of Southern Queensland researcher Dr Alexander Venner using data from NASA’s Kepler extended K2 mission captured in 2017.

A newly discovered planet is believed to be just six percent larger than Earth, yet its surface temperature is closer to that of Mars, potentially dipping below -70 degrees.

The candidate planet, named HD 137010 b, was identified by an international team led by University of Southern Queensland researcher Dr Alexander Venner.
The candidate planet, named HD 137010 b, was identified by an international team led by University of Southern Queensland researcher Dr Alexander Venner.(University of Southern Queensland)

Venner highlighted that HD 137010 b stands out as the first potential planet with Earth-like features to orbit a bright Sun-like star, making it viable for detailed follow-up research.

“Although today’s astronomical tools aren’t equipped to fully explore this newly found planet, it holds promise as a top candidate for future radial velocity tools aimed at identifying Earth-like worlds,” he explained.

“Upcoming space missions, such as NASA’s Habitable Worlds Observatory, which are designed to directly capture images of Earth-like planets, might also be able to photograph HD 137010 b,” he added.

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