New planet discovered 35 light years away

July 26, 2025 / 4:51 PM

Sharjah 24 – WAM: A research team from the Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets at the University of Montreal has discovered a planet that may possess conditions suitable for life. The planet is located approximately 35 light years from Earth.

Discovery made using NASA’s TESS Telescope

The team utilised NASA’s TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite) space telescope to identify the planet, named L 98-59 f. It is one of five planets orbiting a red dwarf star in the L 98-59 system.

Located in the habitable zone

L 98-59 f lies within the star’s habitable zone, the region where liquid water could potentially exist. It receives a similar amount of stellar energy as Earth does from the Sun, making it a candidate for possible habitability.

A compact and diverse planetary system

The L 98-59 system was previously believed to host only four planets. However, after extensive analysis of data from both space- and ground-based telescopes, the fifth planet was identified.

Detected through stellar motion

Unlike the other planets in the system, L 98-59 f does not transit between its star and Earth, making it invisible to standard transit detection methods. Instead, scientists detected it by observing subtle shifts in the motion of its host star — a method known as the radial velocity technique.