Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Astronomers discover new planet

Astronomers discover new planet
By Neil Bowdler
BBC science reporter

Planet hunters say the system has many similarities to our own
Astronomers in the US say they have found a new planet in orbit around a star 41 light years from Earth.

The discovery brings to five the number of planets orbiting the star, 55 Cancri, the most found to date in a single solar system outside our own.

Astronomers have found more than 250 planets outside our own solar system - the team behind the latest discovery have found more than anyone else.

The new planet is a gas planet about 45 times the mass of the Earth.

Their latest find is a fifth planet to add to the four they had already discovered around 55 Cancri, a double or binary star in the constellation of Cancer.

See full article at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7082257.stm

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