Exoplanet
The closest known exoplanet to Earth, orbiting within the habitable zone of the nearest star to the Sun.
| Type | Exoplanet |
|---|---|
| Orbits | Proxima Centauri |
| Distance from Earth | 4.24 ly |
| Diameter | 13,600 km |
| Mass | 6.39 × 10²⁴ kg |
| Temperature | -55°C |
| Orbital period | 11 days |
| Apparent magnitude | 11.13 |
| Hemisphere | Southern |
| Discovered | 2016 |
Every exoplanet here was found indirectly, by the wobble or the dimming it causes in its own star, since none is close enough to photograph in real detail.
At 13,600 km across, Proxima Centauri b is 1.1 times the diameter of Earth.
Its mass is 1.1 times the mass of Earth.
A single orbit takes 11.2 days.
The light reaching us from Proxima Centauri b tonight left it around 4 years ago.
Of the 22 exoplanets these pages cover, only 0 lie closer to us.
An average temperature of 218 K works out at -55 degrees Celsius, colder than the 15 degrees Earth averages.
It has been on record since 2016.
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