Kepler-452b
Distance: 1,400 Lightyears
Star: Kepler-452
Constellation: Cygnus
The discovery of Kepler-452b was announced on July 23, 2015, by NASA. It was immediately proclaimed as a Super-Earth by the media, even called “Earth’s Cousin” by some in the scientific community. It is said to orbit around the Kepler-452 star and is within the habitable zone. Kepler-452b is actually the first rocky planet of any type we’ve discovered in this system.
The planet is about 5 times the mass of Earth, often getting comparisons to Neptune by many scientists. Due to being a bigger size, Kepler-452b unsurprisingly has about 2 times the gravity of Earth. One year on this planet is 385 days, which is not too far off of Earth’s orbit pattern. The temperature here averages between -8 degrees Celsius or 17.6 degrees Fahrenheit to 17 degrees Celsius or 62.6 degrees Fahrenheit. While Kepler-452b is said to have water & an atmosphere, it is actually 2 billion years older than Earth. We’re also seeing it essentially in its past. Therefore, many assume the water and atmosphere might both be evaporated. Due to the distance, it would also take us 26 million years to get there. In spite of the risks, this is one of the few potential planets that could house human life.