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A planet that does not orbit a host star has been found 100 light years from Earth.
The planet, named CFBDSIR2149, is known as a "rogue" or "free-floating" planet because it wanders through space free of its parent star.
Such bodies have been identified before, but what's exciting about this discovery is that it's the closest free-floating planet to Earth to have even been found, giving researchers the opportunity to study its atmosphere in detail.
The AFP details some of CFBDSIR2149's likely characteristics:
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/rouge-planet-without-a-star-discovered-2012-11
The planet, named CFBDSIR2149, is known as a "rogue" or "free-floating" planet because it wanders through space free of its parent star.
Such bodies have been identified before, but what's exciting about this discovery is that it's the closest free-floating planet to Earth to have even been found, giving researchers the opportunity to study its atmosphere in detail.
The AFP details some of CFBDSIR2149's likely characteristics:
- between 50 and 120 million years old
- has a temperature of around 750 degrees Fahrenheit
- has a mass of four to seven times that of Jupiter (the biggest planet of our solar system)
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/rouge-planet-without-a-star-discovered-2012-11
