MOSCOW, June 25, A group of scientists has discovered three super-Earths, one of which is in the habitable zone, according to an article for the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (MNRAS).
“The analysis revealed three planet candidates with orbital periods of 7.3, 38, and 151 Earth days. <…> The farthest of these is in the habitable zone,” the text states.
A super-Earth is a class of planets larger than Earth but lighter than Neptune. These cosmic bodies are made of gas, rock, or a combination of both.
The study of the star HD 48948 was carried out using the HARPS-N spectrograph; the scientists selected 189 high-precision radial velocity measurements over just under ten years. The minimum mass of the exoplanets discovered, according to scientists' calculations, is 5-11 times greater than that of Earth.
Based on the data obtained, the team recognized the star HD 48948 as the closest planetary system with a super-Earth in the habitable zone of a star similar to the Sun.
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