July 01, 2023
A trio of exoplanets was discovered with the help of Kepler, National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s retired space telescope, during its renewed mission, K2. Spotted by a group of citizen scientists and astrophysicists, these planets may have been some of the last planets observed by Kepler during its final days. The exoplanets are between the size of Earth and Neptune, the smallest planet K-416 b being approximately 2.6 times the size of Earth. It revolves around its red dwarf star in around 13 days. K2-417 b is a little over three times the size of Earth, while the final unconfirmed planet EPIC 246251988 b is approximately four times the size of Earth. These planets take 6.5 and 10 days to orbit their stars, respectively.
Did You Know?
Kepler helped with the discovery of more than 2,600 confirmed exoplanets till its retirement in 2018.
Image for representational purposes
