The American Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) shared the latest news about the James Webb Space Telescope. For the first time, researchers have been able to confirm the existence of an exoplanet using data obtained by James Webb.

Planet LHS 475 b is nearly the same size as Earth, 99% of Earth’s diameter. Mark Clampin, director of the astrophysics division at NASA’s headquarters in Washington, said:

These first observations of an Earth-sized rocky planet open the door to many future opportunities with Webb to study the atmospheres of rocky planets.

He also noted:

The web is bringing us closer to a new understanding of terrestrial worlds beyond our solar system, and the task is just getting started.

According to NASA, of all the telescopes in operation, only “James Webb” can study the properties of the atmospheres of Earth-sized exoplanets. Erin May of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab explained:

These observatories are beautiful. The telescope is so sensitive that it can easily detect all molecules, but we can’t come to any firm conclusions about the planet’s atmosphere yet.

The telescope also showed that the planet was several hundred degrees hotter than Earth. If clouds are detected, researchers can conclude that the planet looks more like Venus, which has an atmosphere of carbon dioxide and is constantly surrounded by thick clouds. Another discovery is that the planet makes a full revolution in just two days. Although LHS 475 b is closer to its star than any planet in the Solar System, the red dwarf’s temperature is less than half the temperature of the Sun, so researchers suggest it may still have an atmosphere.