Scientists just discovered that these 4 Earth-like planets could potentially support life

A NASA illustration of the seven TRAPPIST-1 planets.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

The Hubble Telescope team has discovered the potential for "substantial amounts of water" on four of seven Earth-sized planets found earlier this year, Axios writes. The system of planets orbits a star called TRAPPIST-1 and is about 40 light years from our own planet.

By measuring the ultraviolet light on the planets and the amount of hydrogen leaving them, "results suggest the innermost planets, TRAPPIST-1B and TRAPPIST-1C, could have lost as much as 20 Earth-oceans-worth of water in the last eight billion years," Popular Mechanics writes. "The outer planets, however, including E, F, and G, which orbit in the habitable zone, would have lost less water, and could still retain vast stores of liquid water on the surface."

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Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.