NASA's Kepler Mission has recently discovered a planet very similar to earth located 1,400 light years away. NASA's Kepler Mission was launched to identify other planets that are similar to earth and are revolving around a start on the habitable zone.

The discovery surrounds a planet called Kepler 452b; it orbits its sun every 385 days. The mass of the planet is five times higher than earth and size is 60% bigger. Kepler 452b is orbiting an older star which is hotter than our sun.

According to researchers, chances are high for this planet to have a rocky surface. It appears from its thick atmosphere that water is present underneath it.

Kepler 452b is a brilliant candidate to have conditions that are required to support life, said Jon Jenkins, a Kepler data analysis lead at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffet Field, California. Besides, Kepler 452b could help researchers predict the future of earth 1.5 billion years from now.

Doug Caldwell, a SETI Institute Scientist who works with the Kepler Mission, says the runaway greenhouse phase seems to have already evaporated the potential oceans on the planet's surface.

The Kepler Mission has helped researchers discover 12 planets in the habitable zone. The average size of these planets is between the size of earth and the size of Neptune. Kepler 452b's discovery has given rise to speculations on the internet about aliens, though NASA has not confirmed discovery of any form of life outside earth.