Earth-like Planet 'Kepler-22b' - Ideal Place for Life

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"This is a phenomenal discovery in the course of human history" 

- Geoff Marcy of University of California

NASA discovers a new planet which is similar to Earth, sitting outside our solar system which seems to be ideal place for life.

The planet is smack in the middle of Goldilocks zone (that's how astronomers call it), that hard to find place that's not too hot, not too cold, where water, which is essential for life, doesn't freeze or boil.

NASA announced this planet's confirmation on December 5 along with other discoveries by its Kepler telescope, which was launched on a planet-hunting mission in 2009.

The new planet - named Kepler-22b - has key aspects it shares with Earth. It circles a star that could be the twin of our sun and at just about the same distance. The planet's year of 290 days is even close to ours. It likely has water and rock.

The planet is bout 2.4 times the Earth size, a bit big for life to exist on the surface. It is more likely the Neptune, a gas-and-liquid planet with only a rocky core and mostly ocean. It probably has water and rock.

New planet discovery excites scientists, with the distance of 600 light years away with roughly the right temperature for plant and animal habitation which is causing a buzz in the science community.