New Discovery: An Alien Solar System With Two Earth-Sized Worlds
Two Water Worlds for the Price of One
The Kepler-62 star system (K-type star, smaller and cooler than Sol) has two roughly Earth-sized planets within the habitable zone. Additionally, modeling suggests that both may be entirely covered by water oceans. Kepler-62e is 60% larger in diameter than Earth and orbits every 122 days; Kepler-62f is 40% larger and orbits every 267 days.
The Extrasolar Planets Encyclopedia has an entry on the system, which gives an orbital period of 367 days for Kepler-62f, not 267. So there’s a discrepancy. However, math can provide the answer. Kepler-62 is listed as having a mass of 0.69 Sols, Kepler-62f orbits with a semi-major axis of 0.78 AU. Go forth and mathify it!
Note that there are a total of five planets in the system so far discovered. The other three are closer in to the sun, and much smaller.
Kepler-62 is about 1200 light years from Earth. So… a bit of a schlepp.