Astronomers have discovered a new planet outside our solar system, named GI 410 b, which is classified as a sub-Neptune exoplanet. The finding was made using a method known as radial velocity, which tracks changes in the speed of a star caused by the gravitational pull of an orbiting planet.
The star GI 410, around which this newly discovered planet orbits, is located about 39 light-years away from Earth. It is smaller and lighter than our Sun, possessing only half its size and mass. The researchers leading this study are from an international team, with Andres Carmona from Grenoble Alpes University in France taking the lead.
GI 410 b has at least 8.4 times the mass of Earth and completes an orbit around its star every 6.02 days. It is positioned very close to its star—about 0.053 astronomical units (AU), which is much closer than Mercury is to our Sun. As a result, the planet experiences a high level of radiation and stellar wind from its host star, receiving over 20 times more sunlight than Earth.
The discovery was reported on April 4, 2025, and the analysis benefited from observations taken with the SPIRou instrument at the Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope and the SOPHIE spectrometer at the Haute-Provence Observatory in France. The researchers observed a clear signal indicating the planet’s presence, which was consistent across various data correction methods used to analyze the star’s movement.
While GI 410 b is confirmed, the team also noted potential signs of two additional planets in the system, with orbital periods of 2.99 and 18.7 days, although these need further observations to confirm if they are indeed planets.
The findings about GI 410 b are not just interesting for astronomers but also for understanding how various planets interact with their stars, especially those that are located much closer than Earth is to the Sun.
-Rashmi Kumari
