Overview
- Astronomers combined more than 20 years of precision spectra from instruments including Penn State’s Habitable‑Zone Planet Finder and Kitt Peak’s NEID to isolate the planet’s signal.
- The data reveal a 54‑day orbit around the nearby red dwarf GJ 251, yielding a minimum mass near four Earths for the newly designated GJ 251 c.
- GJ 251 c lies in the star’s temperate zone about 18 light‑years away, where liquid water could be possible if the planet has an atmosphere.
- The analysis, published in The Astronomical Journal, also refines the system’s previously known inner planet, GJ 251 b, which orbits in roughly 14 days.
- Researchers describe GJ 251 c as one of the best nearby candidates for atmospheric study in the next five to ten years, though current facilities cannot directly image it.