Super Earth

Super Earths are exotic planets unlike any in our solar system. They are more massive than the Earth yet lighter than gas giants like Neptune. These planets, about 70 known to circle stars beyond our sun, can be made of gas, rock or a combination of both.

55 Cancri-e is the name of a new Super Earth discovered recently. It is a planet around a binary star system 55 Cancri. 55 Cancri is a binary star approximately 41 light-years away from Earth in the constellation of Cancer. The system consists of a G-type star and a smaller red dwarf, separated by over 1,000 AU. The 55 Cancri system was the first known to have four, and later five planets, and may possibly have more. The innermost planet, e, transits 55 Cancri A as viewed from Earth. The innermost planet is thought to be a terrestrial “super-Earth” planet, with a mass roughly half of Neptune’s and since then it has been discovered that the side of the planet facing its star has temperatures more than 2,000 Kelvin(more than 3,140 Fahrenheit), hot enough to melt metal.