Artist's View of Extrasolar Planet GJ1214b

GJ1214b, shown in this artist's view, is a super-Earth orbiting a red dwarf star 40 light-years from Earth. New observations from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope show that it is a waterworld enshrouded by a thick, steamy atmosphere. GJ1214b represents a new type of planet, like nothing seen in our solar system or any other planetary system currently known.

Credit

NASA/ESA/D. Aguilar, Harvard-Smithsonian CfA

ENLARGE