James Webb telescope discovers its first Earth-sized exoplanet

• The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced that the James Webb Space Telescope has discovered an Earth-sized exoplanet, its first.
• Researchers have named the planet LHS 475 b. Located just 41 light years away, the planet orbits very close to a red dwarf star and completes a full orbit in two days.

What are exoplanets?

• Exoplanets orbit other stars and are beyond our solar system.
• Exoplanets come in a host of different sizes and temperature ranges.
• Researchers look for their mass and diameter along with determining if they are solid, gaseous or have water vapour in their atmosphere.

How are exoplanets discovered?

• Discovering exoplanets is quite tough as they are small and hard to spot around their bright host stars.
• Scientists thus rely on indirect methods, such as the transit method, which is "measuring the dimming of a star that happens to have a planet pass in front of it", according to NASA.

what are red dwarf stars?

• Red dwarf stars are quite common in the universe.
• As they don't radiate much light, it's tough to detect them with the naked eye.
• However, as red dwarfs are dimmer than other stars, it is easier to find exoplanets that surround them.