Nearest exoplanet
- Who
- Proxima Centauri b
- What
- 4.224 light year(s)
- Where
- Not Applicable
- When
- 24 August 2016
On 24 August 2016, astronomers using the European Southern Observatory announced their discovery of a planet orbiting Proxima Centauri. At a distance of just 4.224 light years, Proxima Centauri b was found using the radial velocity technique, in which the spectral lines of the star undergo Doppler shifts suggesting an orbiting planet. Proxima Centauri b has an estimated mass of around 1.27 Earth masses and a radius more than 1.1 times that of Earth’s.