A year on the melting planet takes just 1.4 Earth days While
astronomers continue to rack up a list of exciting new exoplanet
discoveries, some are simply more awesome than others. The crown
jewel of the search for other planets would be an orb similar to
Earth, perhaps even similar enough to support living beings. A
newly found world called UFC-1.01 is most definitely one of the
more interesting recent finds, but not for its ability to foster
life — in fact it's quite the opposite. While studying a red
dwarf star named GJ 436 using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope,
astronomers noticed something odd: a slight fluctuation in the
amount of infrared light the star was giving off. After further
study, the researchers were able to identify the cause — a small
planet, two-thirds the size of Earth is orbiting the star at a
remarkably close distance. The scientists believe that UFC-1.01
is so close to its star that it not only would be completely
lifeless, but may also be absolutely covered in molten rock.
With a surfa