This news comes from Discovery News via Discovery Space producer Ian O’Neill. The “super-Earth” exoplanet GJ 1214b was found orbiting a red dwarf star a mere 42 light years from Earth. “Super-Earth” planets are those with masses between 5-10 times that of our own Earth. Most known exoplanets – planets outside our own solar system – are much larger because earlier detection methods could not identify Earth sized planets.

This new planet is only 6.5 times the mass and 2.7 times wider than our planet, which means it resembles our own planet’s characteristics much more closely than other “hot-Jupiter” type planets.

What’s especially fascinating about GJ 1214b is the likely abundance of water (possibly in liquid form). By measuring the size, mass, and density of the planet, David Charbonneau and his team at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass. were able to determine that the planet is made of up to 75 percent water. This will later be confirmed by atmospheric analysis.

Don’t grab your wetsuit just yet
Although a Waterworld might sound appealing to open water swimmers, these oceans are around 530 degrees Fahrenheit (280 degrees Celsius). On Earth, these temperatures would boil the oceans, but it’s possible that atmospheric conditions on GJ 1214b keep things flowing.

Read more about GJ 1214b from the article “Waterworld” Super-Earth Discovered by Discovery News