After Being Written Off, Earth-Like Planet that Could Support Life Indeed Exists

The first Earth-like planet reportedly discovered in 2009 and written off last year as a data aberration is probably real, new research claims.

The scientific tussle over the exoplanet GJ581d which is said to orbit the red dwarf Gliese 581 about 20 light years away from Earth is a result of last year's research which clamed the planet does not exist and earlier findings were caused by incorrect interpretation of data. The planet was discovered in 2009 by what is called a 'wobble' in its primary star's light emissions. Such wobbles are observed by spectrometers when a planet in orbit crosses the path of light emitted by the primary star, reports Discovery News.

The recent study which affirms the planet's discovery claims that last year's denial was based on inaccurate methods of analysis of spectral data. The new study's authors have claimed the methods adopted in 2014's study work for large planets but cannot confirm or rule out small planets like GJ581d, which was estimated to be twice the size of Earth.

"The existence (or not) of GJ 581d is significant because it was the first Earth-like planet discovered in the 'Goldilocks'-zone around another star and it is a benchmark case for the Doppler technique," the new study's lead author Dr Guillem Anglada-Escudé, said in a news release.

"There are always discussions among scientists about the ways we interpret data but I'm confident that GJ 581d has been in orbit around Gliese 581 all along. In any case, the strength of their statement was way too strong. If they way to treat the data had been right, then some planet search projects at several ground-based observatories would need to be significantly revised as they are all aiming to detect even smaller planets. One needs to be more careful with these kind of claims."