17 Dec 2015

New 'Earth-like' planet discovered

From Afternoons, 1:35 pm on 17 December 2015
Wolf 1061c

An artist's impression of an exoplanet with the potential to support life Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Scientists have found what they believe is the closest potentially habitable planet to Earth. The rocky planet Wolf 1061c is a mere 14 light years away.

The discovery was made by a team of scientists from the University of New South Wales led by Christchurch-raised Dr Duncan Wright.

He tells Jesse Mulligan how it felt to discover Wolf 1061c – an 'Earth-like' planet four times the size of ours.