Super earth
For the first time, NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) has discovered a distant planet within the zone of potential habitability. The planet is part of a trio orbiting a star known as GJ 357. Known as "GJ 357 d," NASA calls it"especially intriguing." "This is exciting, as this is TESS's first discovery of a nearby super-Earth that could harbor life—TESS is a small, mighty mission with a huge reach," says Lisa Kaltenegger, associate professor of astronomy, director of Cornell's Carl Sagan Institute, and a member of the TESS science team, in a press statement.