The gemstone planet, called ’55 Cancri e’, has a radius twice that of Earth’s and a mass that’s eight times greater, making it a “super-Earth.†The planet is one of five found orbiting ’55 Cancri’, a sun-like star about 40 light years from Earth. Located in the constellation of Cancer, scientists say the star can be seen with the naked eye.
Astronomers first spotted the planet last year as it was transiting its star, which allowed them to measure its radius for the first time. Using that information, along with their most recent estimate of its mass, researchers used computer modeling to speculate on the chemical composition of the planet.
Previous research revealed that the host star, 55 Cancri, has more carbon than it does oxygen, leading the US-French team to confirm that significant amounts of carbon and silicon carbide, with only a small amount of water ice, were available during the planet’s formation.
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