Kepler Telescope Finds Distant Planet During Test Run

Washington, DC (AHN) – NASA launched the Kepler space telescope in March, and it has already discovered a distant planet.

The planet is outside the Earth’s solar system and orbits a star the space agency refers to as HAT P-7. It is 26 times closer to its sun than the Earth is to its own.

It is so close, that the temperature on the side facing the sun is probably 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit and 1,000 degrees on the other side, Sarah Seager, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor and Kepler team member, told CNN.

The planet is about the size of Jupiter and orbits its sun in 2.2 days.

The planet’s discovery was encouraging because it was found during the telescope’s test run, NASA officials said

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