Get ready for “House Hunters Intergalactic.”
Scientists analyzing data from the Kepler space telescope have identified 20 planets that could potentially harbor human life someday.
New Scientist reports that the research team is 70 to 80 percent certain that these planets — whose orbit times range from as much as 395 days to as little as 18 — are habitable.
One, called KOI-7923.01, is 97 percent the size of Earth. It’s slightly colder, because it’s farther away from its sunlike star than the Earth is from the sun. But its surface temperature is still warm enough to facilitate running water.
“If you had to choose one to send a spacecraft to, it’s not a bad option,” researcher Jeff Coughlin tells New Scientist.
The discovery comes amid a more comprehensive set of photos from the telescope, says Abel Mendez, director of the Planetary Habitability Lab at Arecibo Observatory. “I believe that this is a much improved catalog,” he adds. “So I’m eager to explore it further.”