While the Pluto "fly- by" dominated the headlines last week, it was the startling discovery of the first near-Earth-size planet by NASA's Kepler mission that received the most press this week.
Bigger, Older Cousin To Earth Discovered
The discovery of the first nearly Earth-size planet in the habitable zone around a star like our Sun, by NASA's Kepler mission, was confirmed on July 23, 2015.
Named Kepler-452b, the newly discovered planet is 60% larger in diameter than Earth and is considered a super-Earth-size planet. While its mass and composition are not yet determined, Kepler-452b is presumed to be rocky. Kepler-452 is 6 billion years old, 1.5 billion years older than our Sun.
The discovery of a planet and star which most closely resemble the Earth and our Sun brings us one step closer to finding an Earth 2.0., said John Grunsfeld, associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate at the agency's headquarters in Washington.
The confirmation of Kepler-452b brings the total number of confirmed planets to 1,030.
Are There Others Out There?
The idea of life or intelligence existing beyond Earth has always fascinated mankind. The search for life in the universe is all set to dramatically accelerate, thanks to the unprecedented $100 million global "Breakthrough Initiatives" announced by renowned physicist Stephen Hawking, Russian billionaire Yuri Milner and others on July 20, 2015.
The 10-year, multi-disciplinary search effort will harness the world's most powerful telescopes namely the 100 Meter Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia, USA and the 64-metre diameter Parkes Telescope in New South Wales, Australia, to mine data from 1 million stars closest stars to Earth, Milky Way and 100 closest galaxies to search for signs of intelligent life beyond Earth.
Look, What Hurtled Past Earth
An asteroid, officially named 2011 UW158, made its closest approach to Earth on July 19, 2015 at 7:37 a.m. PST (4:37 a.m. EST) at a distance of about 1.5 million miles (2.4 million kilometers).
The asteroid, measuring 2000 by 1000 feet (600 by 300 meters) across, is reportedly said to have up to 90 million tons of platinum in its core, in addition to other rare and precious materials.
The July 19, 2015 flyby was the closest approach the asteroid made to Earth for at least the next 93 years.
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Business News
April 17, 2026 15:29 ET The ongoing conflict in the Middle East continues to raise concerns for policymakers who worry about the impact of the supply shock and high energy prices on the real economy. Producer price data and various survey results on the housing market were the main news from the U.S. this week. In Europe, industrial production data for the euro area gained attention. GDP figures out of China and the policy move by the Singapore central bank were in focus in Asia.