News Astronomy

Exoplanets once trumpeted as life-friendly may not exist

Spots on nearby star could have led to false planet detections

Gliese 581g, the planet in the foreground of this illustration, may not exist. A new study asserts that the star Gliese 581 (red) hosts only the three other depicted planets, all of which are too hot to sustain life.

Lynette Cook

By Andrew Grant

- More than 2 years ago

Two planets considered among the most promising for life outside the solar system don’t exist, scientists report July 3 in Science.