A research paper co-authored by an astronomer at The University of Manchester has revealed the discovery of another system of planets that has striking similarities with our own Solar System.
The research, published in the journal Science, also reveals the discovery of scaled versions of Jupiter and Saturn orbiting a star 5,000 light-years away, which are half as massive as the Sun.
While there are more than 250 planets now known, there are only about 25 such systems with multiple planets - and the newly discovered system resembles our own Solar System more closely than any previously observed.
The new research also suggests that such giant planets do not favour the single-life but are more likely to be found in family groups.
Dr Nicholas Rattenbury, a Science and Technology Facilities Council-funded Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Jodrell Bank Centre of Astrophysics, said: "Like humans, gas-giant planets appear to prefer not to come as lonely hearts."
Dr Rattenbury was part of an international team that provided key data sets to the study.
The findings have been revealed from an effort involving a world-wide net of telescopes, including the UK's Liverpool Telescope on the Canary Islands.
A technique known as gravitational microlensing has been used for the study, which is best suited for studying extra-solar planets that resemble the gas giants of the Solar System.
A UK team of microlensing planet hunters are now looking to do further observations that could not only lead to the first detection of an earth-mass extra-solar planet, but even of less massive ones.
Prof Keith Horne from The University of St Andrews said: "Apart from individual spectacular discoveries, the technique of gravitational microlensing allows to infer a census of planets within the Milky Way. Once we know that planets similar to Earth are common, it is straightforward to go ahead on finding them and investigating whether these harbour any forms of life."
Source: By The University Of Manchester
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