GJ 1214 b is an extrasolar super-Earth discovered in 2009 orbiting the star GJ 1214, at a distance of 13 parsecs or approximately 40 light-years from Earth, in the constellation Ophiuchus, and is only the second exoplanet (after CoRoT-7b) to have an established mass and radius less than those of the giant Solar System planets. The planet is also significant because its proximity to Earth, and the fact that it transits its parent star, means that its atmosphere can be studied using current technologies.[1]
The body - dubbed GJ1214b - is circling dim host star GJ1214 every 38 hours at a distance of just 1.3 million miles. The star's modest surface temperature of 2,700°C, though, means that GJ1214b itself is a balmy 200°C.
The planet has a mass and radius of 6.5 and 2.7 times that of Earth, respectively. The density obtained from these figures "suggests that GJ1214b is composed of about three-fourths water and other ices, and one-fourth rock".
CfA graduate student Zachory Berta, who first identified the planet, said: "Despite its hot temperature, this appears to be a waterworld. It is much smaller, cooler, and more Earthlike than any other known exoplanet."
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