Astronomers had found a planet similar to Earth in a solar system that is approximately 200 light years away. The planet had been revealed when the data from NASA”s Kepler spacecraft was analyzed. The initial similarities had made the researchers dub it Earth’s Gassy Twin, but subsequent findings have suggested that there are more than a few differences between this pair of planets.

The mass of the planet called KOI-314c is like that of Earth but it is about 60% larger in diameter as it has a very thick gaseous atmosphere. From observations made and conclusions drawn the astronomers at the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics have suggested that the planet is merely 30% denser than water.

Traditionally astronomers measure the weight or mass of a heavenly body in a solar system by the tiny wobbles of the parent star induced by the planet’s gravity. However the astronomers who weighed KOI-314c used a different method called the transit timing variations or TTV.

This method is dependent on more than one planet orbiting the same star to be effective. TTV was used because the traditional method is very difficult to use to determine the mass of a planet the size of the Earth. The main finding of this science project just emphasized the fact that even twins can be very different.