images

Futuristic Advert for tourism on Kepler-16 b - Illustration

by

Nasa/JPL-Caltech/Novapix

Reference

a-exo99-31302

Date

2017-03-06

Like Luke Skywalker's planet "Tatooine" in Star Wars, Kepler-16b orbits a pair of stars. Depicted here as a terrestrial planet, Kepler-16b might also be a gas giant like Saturn. Prospects for life on this unusual world aren't good, as it has a temperature similar to that of dry ice. But the discovery indicates that the movie's iconic double-sunset is anything but science fiction.