Another Earth? Scientists Discover A Planet That Can Actually Support Alien Life

A team of astronomers have discovered a planet similar to the size of Earth orbiting a star from a distance far enough to sustain life.
According to BBC, Kepler 186f is 1.1 times the size of Earth and right at the edge of the habitable zone of Kepler 186, a star located approximately 490 light years away.
The planet was located by a team led by Elisa Quintana of the SETI Institute using the Kepler telescope, which has found hundreds of planets.
Most of these planets are too large or orbit their star too closely to sustain life. But Kepler 186f’s location suggests that it could very well have both water and extra terrestrial life on its surface.
The first Earth-sized planet to be found in a star’s habitable zone, Kepler 186f is the fifth and outermost planet surrounding Kepler 186, which is slightly less bright than our own sun.

The other four planets in the star’s orbit make it around Kepler in three to 21 days, making them inhospitable. Kepler 186f orbits Kepler every 130 days, just fitting in to the star’s habitable zone.
He added that because the planet most likely has a rocky surface and clouds of an orange and red color, the same color of its star.
Our clouds are white, he says, because the sun is more white than any color.
Kepler’s reflection would also make Kepler 186f’s plant life yellow and the bodies of water much more gray than our own.
But we won’t be certain that clouds or water exist on the planet until we can conclude that it has an atmosphere, which scientists are currently trying to determine.
The discovery of Kepler 186f suggests that there could be many more planets existing in habitable zones close by.
Much of the upcoming research will be conducted by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.
After it launches in 2018, we will gain a firmer understanding of the chemical compositions of planets in habitable zones and quickly be able to tell if they include the same elements that make up the Earth.