Science

Did NASA Find Earth’s Twin?

NASA has found a new planet outside our solar system that’s eerily similar to Earth in key aspects.

Scientists say the temperature on the surface of Kepler-22b, as it’s named, is about a comfy 72 degrees and is about 600 light years away. Its star is very similar to our sun and the planet likely has water and land. It was found in the middle of the habitable zone, making it the best potential target found for life yet.

NASA Confirms Earth-like Planet in Habitable Zone of a Star

(Image: NASA/Ames/JPL-Caltech)

The discovery announced Monday was made by NASA’s Kepler planet-hunting telescope, which discovered more than 1,000 planet candidates earlier this year doubling the previously known amount. This is the first time Kepler confirmed a planet outside our solar system in the not-too-hot, not-too-cold habitable zone.

Watch primary investigator Bill Borucki explain more about the potentially Earth-like planet:

“This is a major milestone on the road to finding Earth’s twin,” said Douglas Hudgins, Kepler program scientist, in the NASA press release. “Kepler‘s results continue to demonstrate the importance of NASA’s science missions, which aim to answer some of the biggest questions about our place in the universe.”

Twice before astronomers have announced a planet found in that zone, but neither was as promising. One was later disputed; the other is on the hot edge of the zone.

Check out this CBS News report that also includes information on NASA’s recently discovered massive black holes:

The Kepler telescope discovers planets and planet candidates by tracking changes in brightness that happen when the potential planet passes in front of a star, or “transits”. Kepler requires at least three transits to verify a signal as a planet, according to the press release.

Kepler is also credited with the recent finding of a real-life Tatooine planet.

Watch the full NASA press announcement of the recent confirmation the habitable nature of Kepler-22b:

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Comments (129)

1 2 3
  • wasalibonce
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:54am

    I said “let alone a simple mammal the size of a mouse.“ I meant to say something to the effect of ”only a mammal the size of a mouse.” That’s a big wording mistake. Doesn’t change anything, though!

    Report Post »  
    • THIS GENERATION
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 12:22pm

      WASALIBONCE, read the bible, if you are bold enough for the TRUTH.
      The bible has proved itself many times over the centurys. It has mentioned the workings of the universe long before ‘scientists’ knew what they themselves were thinking.
      You bold enough to check one site? Or do you only stay in your ‘confort zone’ of illusions? DINOSAURS—PART OF GOD’S CREATION: http://www.drdino.com/dinosaurs-in-the-bible/

      Anyone wants to know the Truth, that is Reality; Just ask God. If He really exists, you will get an answer, maybe not right away, but you will get an answer.

      Report Post » THIS GENERATION  
    • jhrusky
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 12:22pm

      @SMITHCLAR3NC3

      Life doesn’t necessarily have to be carbon-based. It’s pretty unlikely we are going to find aliens living that resemble us — we may not even recognize aliens as life.

      Report Post » jhrusky  
    • pavepaws
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 3:19pm

      Kepler-22b is a misnomer. The inhabitants refer to it as Questar.

      Report Post »  
    • Bloody Sam
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 4:23pm

      Is it tilted on its axis to provide seasons?
      Does it have a magnetic field to protect the surface from the harmful effects of its primary?
      If not, I ain’t buying a ticket. No way.

      Report Post » Bloody Sam  
    • Pontiac
      Posted on December 21, 2011 at 10:37pm

      [DINOSAURS—PART OF GOD’S CREATION]
      No one asked, fruitcake.

      Report Post » Pontiac  
  • wasalibonce
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:36am

    @ caveman74
    I can’t argue the comment above with a straight face. But I will address you. Yes, you can prove that man and dinosaurs did not co-exist. If one meazly toe-bone was found with dinosaur fossils, that would destroy evolutionary science. It has not and will not ever happen. They cannot even find a human-like fossil there, let alone a simple mammal the size of a mouse! Ever heard of the K2 layer? You’re gonna tell me that we were around 65 million years ago? There’s a layer of iridium all over the world that points to a massive cosmic impact. Iridium doesn’t exist on Earth (not this amount, anyway). We didn’t see that happen because, obviously, we weren’t there. That’s when you infer, through copious amounts of evidence, that something happened. You said yourself that at one point we thought the earth was flat. Yet we know that it has been disproved for, what, a couple of centuries?
    We knew that the earth was round before we took that beautiful photo of it in the 60s, from space. How do you think we came to the conclusion that Earth was round without seeing it for ourselves? Scientific inference. You’re right, we don’t know everything about everything yet, but we will get mighty close. And it’s those “mistakes” that we need as precedents to learn more about our world and universe.

    Report Post »  
    • teamarcheson
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:43am

      Only 600 Light Year? How many years at 40,000 miles per hour?

      Does humanity have the right to send its immorality and defects to another world. Just think what Democrats would do to this new world.

      Report Post »  
    • SHOOTnCRASH
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:51am

      We will know everything about everything if we exist long enough, but we wont get there before something stops us.

      Report Post » SHOOTnCRASH  
    • Ruler4You
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:58am

      “Did NASA find earths twin”?

      No. No they did not. What they found was something that they ‘think’ could be a compatible equivalent.

      But NASA hasn’t a very good record for “thinking” in the last few decades, IMHBLO. Their mistakes are nearly as numerous as their marginal successes.

      Frankly, I put NASA in the same class as the U.N. or CIA these days. They can barely get out of bed without falling down. If I didn’t think they were going to invent a better Velcro, I’d say shut the doors.

      Report Post » Ruler4You  
    • Dojo
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 12:10pm

      1,978 years, plus time to gain speed and slow down. Someone better invent warp speed before they try this one.

      Report Post »  
    • InversionTheory
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 12:27pm

      @ Teamarcheson

      600 light years is about 352,700,000,000,000 miles. At 40,000 mph… you’re looking at 8,817,500,000 hours or.. 1,005,896 years of travel time. Without faster-than-light propulsion, this place is out of reach, BUT…if we can pull out light reflected from this planet, we can run it through a spectrometer and at least see what’s there… chemically-speaking.

      Report Post »  
    • 4truth2all
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 1:40pm

      Yo Wasalibonce:
      IF the bible is true how many people do you think roamed the earth ? …. I will answer for you… prior to the flood; probably very few and probably in a limited area. In fact, as I speak I wonder if someone has not done the numbers based on what information the bible does provide. My point being the reason why human bones may not have been found in the stomach cavity of T-Rex. There are 2 places in the bible where it would sure seem to describe a dinosaur yet they were not found until the 1800′s. Also,scripture mentions the circle of the earth in Isaiah which is about 2000 years prior to that “discovery”.
      I am also quite confused by your comment of the iridium…. you say it is not found on earth, but that’s where it was found ???
      Also… we actually know very little about very little
      If you are ACTUALLY searching for the truth check this site out – http://www.bethlemstarmovie.com
      Let me know what you think… Yo, it’s not based on theories; as a christian I’m not afraid of real science. just don’t like the fake stuff.

      Report Post »  
    • nannyatnannydotgov
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:30pm

      InversionTheory

      You calculation is approximately 10% of actual. The actual time is 10,044,000 years traveling at 40,000 MPH. The distance is 3,519,417,600,000,000 miles.

      Send ‘em now and 502,200 generations later….. (20 year average).

      Report Post » nannyatnannydotgov  
    • certified ethical hacker
      Posted on December 9, 2011 at 9:35pm

      the demos would somehow figure out how to get any aliens registered to vote or somehow claim they are being oppressed by the planet and need our taxpayer assistance. The democraps would find a way to get them a green card and say we need to spend billions of bucks to some how get a few flights to the planet to bring them back , even after they explain to the demos they wont be back in time to make the vote they will then ask them to vote by mail in?

      Report Post »  
  • Mark B.
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:33am

    I think someone’s funding is in jeopardy.

    Report Post »  
  • Walkabout
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:28am

    This is important. I can just imagine an avaricious Nancy Pelosi or Soros kicking it into gear to own such a planet. There are those among us who say that NASA is a waste of time until we solve poverty. But when the greedy see that their is a new world to people with serfs, I can see previously heretofore people who were uninterested in space travel set up taking note & scheming. If the rich & powerful engage in insider trading, might their greed know no bounds?

    Report Post »  
    • Bonnieblue2A
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:48am

      British Billionaire Branson is way ahead of the game since he actually has the ability to go into outerspace.

      This may be the only place left to go to re-espablish freedom is the statists get their way here in the USA.

      Report Post »  
    • Walkabout
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 3:31pm

      Bonnieblue2A

      That is what I have thought for a long time. My favorite story is when there is a revolution by space colonist breaking away from oppressive earth government, but they have zero weapons. They ask a computer as to how they should fight. The computer replies throw rocks. A nuke is not the most powerful weapon in the ‘verse’

      I really expect enterprising statists to try to set up new fiefs. Avarice knows no bounds.

      Report Post »  
    • natstew
      Posted on December 7, 2011 at 9:52am

      Has Maxine Waters or Sheila Jackson Lee asked if we can see the flag our astronauts left there yet?

      Report Post »  
  • Brettcne
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:15am

    So were the scientists right when they said Pluto is a planet or when they said it is now a dwarf planet?

    Report Post »  
    • InversionTheory
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 12:38pm

      Of course they are correct. The scientific body that deals with such things decreed it so, therefore it is.

      I would have preferred they come up with an ACTUAL scientific definition of the word planet so there is no ambiguity, but instead, they declared it by fiat. The designation was changed because we keep finding things bigger than Pluto out in the Kuiper Belt. So were they going to add 5 or 6 new planets…or downgrade Pluto? As things stand… A planet is only a planet if and when the International Astronomical Union says so.

      Report Post »  
  • thegreatcarnac
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:11am

    Kepplerites are already making signs….”Earthlings go home!”

    Report Post »  
  • piper60
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:11am

    I‘ll believe it is Earth’s twin, when a probe or some astronauts send back pictures from the surface.

    Report Post » piper60  
    • tzion
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:21am

      If we could travel at the speed of light, you’d get you pictures in about 1200 years.

      Report Post »  
    • caveman74
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:22am

      I wont believe its earths twin until diplomats come over here to form the united planets based in new york and proceed to tell us we have to stop flying so many useless missions into space because we are causing universal warming and then tax us.

      Report Post »  
    • Rayblue
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 1:59pm

      The new iphone has an app that allows you to photograph something
      2 million light years away. Just point and shoot.

      Report Post » Rayblue  
  • Darla_K
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:55am

    Too bad we don’t have a rocket that can travel the speed of light. I find this discovery awesome and would hope someone in the future can figure out how to get there.

    Report Post » Darla_K  
    • UlyssesP
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:59am

      Occupy Kepler 22b? What if they don’t want us messing up THEIR planet?

      Report Post » UlyssesP  
    • I.Gaspar
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:03am

      Yeah…Obama could spend his vacation on Kepler-22b and think he’s in Asia.

      Report Post »  
    • On The Bayou
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:16am

      This is a major milestone for who ? 600 light years away, please people. Lets try to solve the issues here at home. Whether this planet exist or not will never effect us in any way. These people telling you they have found it and how many light years away it is stretching things isn`t it.

      Report Post » On The Bayou  
    • TXVET48
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 12:08pm

      We’d need to travel many times the speed of light to accomplish anything in a reasonable amount of time. Our nearest star after Sol is nearly 4 light years away. We’re a long ways from space travel.

      Report Post » TXVET48  
  • Melvin Spittle
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:41am

    We will soon have enough national debt to stretch dollars end to end, reaching this new planet.

    Report Post » Melvin Spittle  
  • Raymond Koepsell
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:39am

    Is anyone else but me skeptical that science can tell the temperature on a planet 3.6 quadrillion miles from earth is a balmy 72 degrees when science can’t tell whether our own planet is getting warmer or cooler?

    Report Post »  
    • paulusmaximus
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:18am

      Their jobs wait that should be their cushiony jobs are on the line give them a brake.

      Report Post » paulusmaximus  
  • JLGunner
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:35am

    ….and I heard it’s beautiful this time of year.

    Report Post » JLGunner  
    • Melvin Spittle
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:47am

      Looks alot bigger too. Wonder what the hunting is like? If there is an intelligent life form there we should point our radio telescopes and transmit our intent to occupy their planet because they have too much land and as we all know tha just is not fair.

      Report Post » Melvin Spittle  
    • caveman74
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:09am

      Yah I hate those fat cats on keppler-22b. lets go poop in their parks until they give us free stuff

      Report Post »  
  • Raymond Koepsell
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:35am

    Thank you, science, for finding an alternative to this whole “earth” thing. Voyager I, which blasted off three decades ago, is already 0.000306% of the way there (assuming of course it’s pointed in the right direction). Now I never have to worry about Global Warming ever again. (sigh of relief)

    Report Post »  
  • ltb
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:20am

    Did NASA Find Earth’s Twin?

    No. When scientists can tell me what‘s on the floor of the deepest parts of earth’s oceans, or what’s in the middle of the unexplored regions of the Amazon, then maybe I’ll listen to what they say about something they think is 3.6 quadrillion miles from earth which can’t even be seen.

    Report Post » ltb  
    • 4X4in
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:45am

      Spot on!
      I wonder if they have a 2 party system?

      Report Post »  
  • Keep Your Skepticals On
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:46am

    #OccupyKepler22b – the grass looks greener.

    Report Post » Keep Your Skepticals On  
  • recoveringneocon
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:46am

    Wonder what it cost us to learn this info? or should I say how much we had to borrow? and im sure its all based on facts too.

    Report Post » recoveringneocon  
    • GMP
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:14am

      I’m sure it cost way more than the $600B the military took in its gutting… thanks again Super Committee

      Report Post » GMP  
    • ChiefGeorge
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:49am

      We’ll never get there! Atleast a few generations would never see it even if we started today and had all the funding in the world. In 600 years we may not even be living on the ground, we might be under it or back in the trees the way things are going. At the speed of light 186k miles per second it will take 600 years to get there. A signal from that far away would take almost as much time to get back to earth.

      Report Post » ChiefGeorge  
    • InversionTheory
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 12:31pm

      The entire NASA budget since it‘s founding in 1959 isn’t even $500 billion.

      Report Post »  
    • recoveringneocon
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 3:19pm

      Only 500 Billion really, Does not sound like much does it. This is where some get fooled. You just got to love math. Look at how much was spent in the 1960′s. Lets take 1966 4.41% of the budget. And how much was a dollar worth in 1966, hmmm somehow the word Inflation comes to mind. On top of that I Wonder how much we barrowed of that 500 billion and what the interest on that has been too?

      Report Post » recoveringneocon  
  • SimpleTruths
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:32am

    Its just a matter of time before Newt claims he knew it was there before anyone else.

    Report Post » SimpleTruths  
  • Talmid of Yeshua
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:30am

    Yeah, they know sure that the planet is 72 degrees just like the evolutionists can “prove” evolution, and that the earth is billions of years old.

    Science is no longer science. Without provable evidence, this is just a science fiction story.

    Report Post » Talmid of Yeshua  
    • wasalibonce
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:21am

      You’re wrong brother. Evolution is proven everyday. The only reason it’s still the “theory of evolution” and not the “law of evolution,” is because it happens on an unbelievably slow time frame; a time frame that we, as humans, cannot watch or even comprehend. This forces scientists to gather the monumental evidence needed, such as fossils, carbon dating, and DNA, and use those findings through scientific inference, to show that it actually does happen. Take the dinosaurs, for instance. I would guess that a lot of people, maybe you, think humans existed in their time. Well, where’s the proof? Give me one shred of evidence that our ancestors walked with those lizards and the scientific community is instantly discredited. Just one human fossil found underneath the layer of dinosaur bones and a lot of professional people will eat their hats. The same goes for a planet outside our solar system. There’s much more to it than you think. I’m saying this because you sound mighty knowledgeable in your dismissal of science. There are people who, when confronted with contrary evidence, will take a scientific and questioning approach to better understand the matter. However, there are also folks, like you, who will be unquestionably stubborn to hard facts and verification, and will brush off evidence with narrow-mindedness. How could you even pretend to know?

      Report Post »  
    • ramburner
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:05am

      Hey Was; One shred of evidence that man was here when the dino’s were….. ok. Have you ever seen the painting on the rocks in all the tombs or places that mankind has lived? Many of those paintings around the world show details of the dino and man co-existing. Evolution, according to Darwin on his death bed was a lie. Wake up and start believing the truth.

      Report Post »  
    • caveman74
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:06am

      WASA from a scientific standpoint you can not prove humans and dinosaurs did not co-exist. Carbon dating is flawed. Evolution does not disprove God. Scientists weather they want to believe it or not study Gods science. And historically they do a poor job of it. In the 70s we knew carbon emissions were going to cause the next ice age, now it is going to cause us to all cook. At one point we knew the earth was flat, we knew the universe revolved around the earth. We knew dinosaurs were all reptile (when in the history of earth has one single type of animal lived solely on earth). Scientist cant even agree weather Mars ever had liquid water or not and we have equipment up there right now. How can they know what they say they know about a planet they don’t even know exist for sure by watching a black dot transit a distant star three times? My 7 year old son looked up last night and said “the moon is about a million miles away”. He based his statement on visual data and his own perception of size and distance. This is what science does. There is an inherent bias based on our own perceptions of existence around us. As creatures of habit we look for things that appear similar to us. That is why so many people think there are faces and pyramids on mars.

      Report Post »  
    • cariboodragon
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 11:30am

      kind of like that book you keep refering to as evidence of your beliefs?

      Report Post »  
    • KevINtampa
      Posted on December 7, 2011 at 5:15pm

      Cariboodragon:

      Exactly like that book.

      Science IS a religion. You either have faith in it’s priests (excuse me, scientists) or you don’t.

      Let’s take DNA for example.

      You are on a jury, and the main piece of evidence against the accused is a piece of saliva DNA found at the crime scene. A scientist swears on the Bible then tells you that he studied the sample from the crime scene and a sample taken from the defendant. He tells you, remember you are in the jury, that it is indeed a 99.9% match to the defendant. You must have faith in science and the scientist to believe this piece of evidence and convict the defendant. Why is it faith? Because YOU can’t see the DNA. Neither can the scientist, the scientist puts faith in the arguments and logic made by previous scientists and puts faith in the results of the test that he then studies to conclude it is in fact this person’s DNA. It‘s represented by a series of 0’s and 1′s, you can’t actually see DNA. NO ONE CAN. But it is our faith in science and understanding that allows us to BELIEVE.

      Another anecdote:

      It’s 1692, you are on a jury. A woman has admitted to killing a family of 5 people. She states she is not the woman who was born into the skin she now occupies. She states that 6 other women helped her spirit possess the body she is now in. A priest on the stand says her soul is lost and all the souls attached to the incident are dangerous and should be burned. You can either believe him or not. FAIT

      Report Post »  
    • KevINtampa
      Posted on December 7, 2011 at 5:23pm

      Oh, and just a side read:
      http://www.wacocriminallawblog.com/2011/08/articles/forensics/how-accurate-is-dna-not-as-much-as-you-think/

      “The actual data was submitted to 17 qualified analysts who routinely do forensic work. No other facts were sent, so the examiners did not know who the suspects were. The results obtained without that contextual information were startling. Only one of the 17 agreed with the original examiner. Even more startling is that 12 examiners would have EXCLUDED the suspect they looked at. The remaining 4 would have called the results inconclusive.”

      FAITH.

      Report Post »  
  • hadenoughinpa
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:17am

    Just tell the libs that planet is their utopia maybe they will all sign up to go TEA

    Report Post » hadenoughinpa  
  • Rayblue
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:14am

    It could’ve been worse….
    They could’ve found Earths brother-in-law.

    Report Post » Rayblue  
  • KickinBack
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 8:54am

    They always give newly discovered planets and stars names that sound like the latest version of a software program. How about something simple, like “Planet Bob”?

    Report Post » KickinBack  
    • Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:01am

      Knowing the wannabe dictator of the White House he will demand it be called “Planet Obama.”

      Also I did like that movie “After Earth.”

      Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
    • Komponist-ZAH
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 10:39pm

      Well, you can “buy” a star and name it whatever you want, why not a planet?

      Report Post »  
  • Anonymous T. Irrelevant
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 8:47am

    Until we find a faster way, it will take 1200+ years to find out.

    Report Post » Anonymous T. Irrelevant  
    • KickinBack
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:03am

      Actually, to travel the distance of 1 light year (in 1 earth year) would take around 650,000 years. (very rough average since light year is distance, not time) So multiply by that by the 1200 for round trip and I doubt there be an Earth left when the probe comes back :)

      Report Post » KickinBack  
    • KickinBack
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:14am

      Whoops, too many 0′s…About 65,000…Still quite along time. Time better spent understanding the tax code I’d say…

      Report Post » KickinBack  
    • IMPEACHBHO
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:38am

      Actually, 5.88 trillion miles per light year.

      Report Post » IMPEACHBHO  
    • NOBAMA201258
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:57am

      Lets send the super committee to check it out,along with the “leaders” of ows,and maybe we could get the emperor to go too

      Report Post »  
  • Drum Man
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 8:46am

    Sound like a great place to send the Occu-Tards.

    Report Post » Drum Man  
    • jasmer
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 8:58am

      Naw, they can starve from laziness just as easily if we dumped them in Baja California.

      Check out the ‘before’ & ‘after’ pictures of Israel to see what some hard work can do with a desert.

      Report Post »  
  • Gonzo
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 8:44am

    On that planet there is a President Obama who loves his country, thinks it’s people are basically good and hardworking, supports the free market, state’s rights and defends the unborn. Yep, you guessed it… Bizarro World.

    Report Post » Gonzo  
    • SpankDaMonkey
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 8:49am

      .
      I know it was a tough loss Gonzo, but put the bottle down it’s too early on a Tuesday………

      Report Post » SpankDaMonkey  
    • Gonzo
      Posted on December 6, 2011 at 9:41am

      I’m over it Monkey, I never thaought we had a chance in the first place, so a lead at the half was all gravy to me.

      Report Post » Gonzo  
  • freeweever
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 8:41am

    Pretty cool ha.

    Report Post » freeweever  
  • SamIamTwo
    Posted on December 6, 2011 at 8:41am

    Beam me up Scotty…there is no intelligent life on this planet.

    Report Post » SamIamTwo  
1 2 3

Sign In To Post Comments! Sign In

Sign Up For Our Newsletter!

Glenn Beck Radio

Listen to Glenn Beck 24/7 Listen Now
Restoring Love