Scientists have discovered a "super-Earth" near the solar system

The planet is almost four times more massive than our own and is thought to have a rocky structure. Most importantly, it is in the habitable zone of its star, where liquid water can exist on the surface.

Thediscovery was the result of years of analysing data from various telescopes, including the latest infrared spectrograph Habitable Zone Planet Finder (HPF), installed on the Hobby-Eberly telescope at the McDonald Observatory (Texas). It is this device allowed with high accuracy to catch the weak fluctuations in the motion of the star GJ 251, caused by the gravitational influence of the planets.

Initially, scientists specified the parameters of the already known exoplanet GJ 251 b, rotating around the star in 14 days. However, analysis of the new data revealed another, stronger signal - with a period of 54 days, which indicated the presence of a second, more massive planet - GJ 251 c.

To confirm the discovery, the team also used the NEID spectrograph, created at the University of Pennsylvania and installed at the Kitt Peak Observatory in Arizona. The findings were further validated using sophisticated computational models that helped separate the "noise" of the star's activity from the planet's real signal. This is particularly important because star spots and other manifestations of "star weather" can mimic the motion of planets.

"This is one of the most promising findings in our multi-year programme to search for potentially habitable worlds," said Professor Suvrath Mahadevan, co-author of the study. "The planet is at an ideal distance from its star, and with a suitable atmosphere, water - and therefore life - could exist on it."

The researchers admit that at the current level of technology it is impossible to image the planet or analyse its atmosphere. However, with the advent of a new generation of telescopes - with a diameter of 30 metres or more - this could become a reality in the next 5-10 years. Such telescopes will not only be able to capture light from such exoplanets, but also study the chemical composition of their atmospheres in search of traces of life.

According to Mahadevan, GJ 251 c will be one of the first targets for future missions.

"We are preparing the next wave of discoveries - both in technology and in science manpower," he emphasised.