--- title: "Astronomers Discover “Mirror Image” of Our Solar System" description: "Astronomers discovered an exoplanet orbiting a star so similar to the Sun that it's almost a mirror image of our solar system." date: "2020-06-04" modified: "2020-06-17" authors: - name: "Dan Robitzski" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/danrobitzski" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/astronomers-discover-mirror-image-solar-system" categories: - "Energy" - "Renewable Energy" - "Science & Energy" - "Solar Power" tags: - "exoplanet" - "space" - "stars" - "the digest" --- # Astronomers Discover “Mirror Image” of Our Solar System ![Scientists discovered an Earth-like exoplanet orbiting a star that resembles our Sun so nearly that it's almost like a mirror of our solar system.]() *\Image: NASA\* ## Mirror World Scientists have discovered a distant exoplanet that closely resembles the Earth, orbiting a star that resembles our Sun — almost, they say, as though they were looking in a mirror at our own solar system. Scientists can't yet tell whether the exoplanet, given the name KOI-456.01, could support life. But, [according to a Max Planck Society press release](), it looks like a strong candidate — so much so that they explicitly call it a "mirror image" of our Earth and Sun. ## Sweet Spot The Earth-like exoplanet is one of the worlds orbiting the star Kepler-160, which is about 3,000 lightyears from our star system. Unlike most of the stars that host roughly-Earth-sized exoplanets, scientists learned that Kepler-160 gives off light in the visible spectrum rather than infrared light — a crucial aspect, they believe, of being habitable. Of course, there's a lot that remains unknown. "The full picture of habitability, however, involves a look at the qualities of the star too," Max Planck researcher René Heller said in the release. ## HTRAE Calling an exoplanet "Earth-like" refers more to its size than its habitability. But still, the Kepler-160 system appears strikingly similar to our own. "KOI-456.01 is relatively large compared to many other planets that are considered potentially habitable," Heller said. "But it's the combination of this less-than-double the size of the Earth planet and its solar type host star that make it so special and familiar." **READ MORE:** [A mirror image of Earth and sun]() \[Max Planck Society\] **More on exoplanets:** *[Astronomers Discover “Intriguing,” Extremely Earth-Like Exoplanet]()* ## Author Dan Robitzki is a senior reporter for Futurism, where he likes to cover AI, tech ethics, and medicine. He spends his extra time fencing and streaming games from Los Angeles, California. ### Author social links [Twitter]()