HD 137010 b is a candidate rocky exoplanet slightly larger than Earth, orbiting a Sun-like star at about 146 light-years. Its orbital period is around one year, similar to Earth, and it may lie near the outer edge of the star’s habitable zone, where liquid water could exist under a suitable atmosphere. However, the star is cooler and dimmer, providing less than a third of the heat Earth receives from the Sun, potentially resulting in surface temperatures as low as minus 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Detected via a single transit by NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope, confirmation requires further observations. Models suggest a 40% chance it’s in a conservative habitable zone and 51% in an optimistic one, but a 50-50 chance it falls outside entirely. This makes it a promising yet challenging target for studying Earth-like worlds.
