PRESS RELEASE NO.: STScI-PR06-06

ASTRONOMERS FIND SMALLEST EXTRASOLAR PLANET YET AROUND NORMAL STAR

Using an armada of telescopes, an international team of astronomers has
found the smallest planet ever detected around a normal star outside our
solar system. The extrasolar planet is five times as massive as Earth
and orbits a red dwarf, a relatively cool star, every 10 years. This
artist's illustration shows an icy/rocky planet orbiting a dim star. The
distance between the planet, designated OGLE-2005-BLG-390Lb, and its
host is about three times greater than that between the Earth and the
Sun. The planet's large orbit and its dim parent star make its likely
surface temperature a frigid minus 364 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 220
degrees Celsius).

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