breakingnews:

Astronomers discover planet bigger than Earth, made of diamond

Reuters: Astronomers have discovered a planet twice the size of Earth made largely out of diamond. The planet, called ‘55 Cancri e,’ orbits a sun-like star in the constellation of Cancer. Discovered by a US-Franco research team, its radius is twice that of Earth’s. It is also much more dense with a mass 8 times greater.

A study estimates that at least a third of the planet’s mass, the equivalent of approximately 3 Earth masses, could be diamond.

Photo: The planet ‘55 Cancri e’ is seen in an undated artist’s conception. (via Reuters/NASA)