Astronomers have discovered an exoplanet that's comparable in size, mass and density to Earth, but it so close to its sun-like star it orbits it every 8.5 hours. Known as Kepler-78b, one of two new papers on the planet in Nature estimate the temperature to be around 1230-2730 degree Celsius.
This is the smallest exoplanet for which both radius and mass are known accurately and although Kepler-78b is slightly larger and denser than Earth, it's "a virtual twin of Earth" by astronomical standards.
This is the smallest exoplanet for which both radius and mass are known accurately and although Kepler-78b is slightly larger and denser than Earth, it's "a virtual twin of Earth" by astronomical standards.
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