A potentially rocky world, larger than Earth
What is a super-Earth?

The basics

What is a super-Earth?

Super-Earths – a class of planets unlike any in our solar system – are more massive than Earth yet lighter than ice giants like Neptune and Uranus, and can be made of gas, rock or a combination of both. They are between twice the size of Earth and up to 10 times its mass.

Super-Earth is a reference only to an exoplanet’s size – larger than Earth and smaller than Neptune – but not suggesting they are necessarily similar to our home planet. The true nature of these planets remains shrouded in uncertainty because we have nothing like them in our own solar system – and yet, they are common among planets found so far in our galaxy.

Get to know some super-Earths

Get to know some super-Earths


GJ 15 A b

The innermost world in its system, GJ 15 A b, takes just 11 days to make a full orbit around the star – a "year" on this planet.

55 Cancri e

55 Cancri e, also known as Janssen, orbits a star called Copernicus only 41 light years away.

Over the last three decades, we have discovered all kinds of strange planets we never knew existed and that have no analog in our solar system. Super-Earths can be up to 10 times more massive than Earth. We don’t yet know enough about these planets to tell at what point they might lose a rocky surface. But in the range of 3-10 times the mass of Earth, there might be a wide variety of planetary compositions, including water worlds, snowball planets, or planets that, like Neptune, are composed largely of dense gas. Exoplanets at the upper limits of the super-Earth size limit can also be referred to as sub-Neptunes, or mini-Neptunes.

Key facts

Super-Earths and mini-Neptunes

Super-Earths and mini-Neptunes

In 2019, NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) discovered a super-Earth and two mini-Neptunes orbiting a faint, cool star about 73 light-years away in the southern constellation of Pictor. The M-type dwarf star is about 40% smaller than the Sun in both size and mass, and it has a surface temperature about one-third cooler than the Sun’s.

The innermost planet, TOI 270 b, is likely a rocky super-Earth about 25% larger than Earth. It orbits the star every 3.4 days at a distance about 13 times closer than Mercury orbits the Sun. Based on statistical studies of known exoplanets of similar size, the science team estimates TOI 270 b has a mass around 1.9 times greater than Earth’s.

The other two planets, TOI 270 c and d, are, respectively, 2.4 and 2.1 times larger than Earth and orbit the star every 5.7 and 11.4 days. Although only about half its size, both may be similar to Neptune in our solar system, with compositions dominated by gases rather than rock, and they likely weigh around 7 and 5 times Earth’s mass, respectively, making them mini-Neptunes.

TOI System Infographic
This infographic illustrates key features of the TOI 270 system, located about 73 light-years away in the southern constellation Pictor. The three known planets were discovered by NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite through periodic dips in starlight caused by each orbiting world. Insets show information about the planets, including their relative sizes, and how they compare to Earth. Temperatures given for TOI 270’s planets are equilibrium temperatures, calculated without the warming effects of any possible atmospheres. Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Scott Wiessinger

Researchers hope further exploration of the star, TOI 270, may help explain how two of these mini-Neptunes formed alongside a nearly Earth-size world. Further research may reveal additional planets in the system. If planet d has a rocky core covered by a thick atmosphere, its surface would be too warm for the presence of liquid water, considered a key requirement for a potentially habitable world. But follow-up studies may discover additional rocky planets at slightly greater distances from the star, where cooler temperatures could allow liquid water to pool on their surfaces.

Climate patterns of a super-Earth

Climate patterns of a super-Earth

Observations from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope led to the first temperature map of a super-Earth in 2016. The map reveals extreme temperature swings from one side of the planet to the other, and hints at a reason for this: lava flows.

A 3D model of 55 Cancri e. Credit: NASA Visualization Technology Applications and Development (VTAD) more info and download options ›

The toasty super-Earth 55 Cancri e is relatively close to Earth at 41 light-years away. It orbits very close to its star, whipping around it every 18 hours. Because of the planet's proximity to the star, it is tidally locked by gravity just as our Moon is to Earth. That means one side of 55 Cancri, referred to as the day side, is always cooking under the intense heat of its star, while the night side remains in the dark and is much cooler.

Spitzer stared at the planet with its infrared vision for a total of 80 hours, watching it orbit its star multiple times. These data allowed scientists to map temperature changes across the entire world. To their surprise, they found a dramatic temperature difference of 2,340 degrees Fahrenheit (1,300 Kelvin) from one side of the planet to the other. The hottest side is nearly 4,400 degrees Fahrenheit (2,700 Kelvin), and the coolest is 2,060 degrees Fahrenheit (1,400 Kelvin).

Use your mouse or fingertip to experience a 360 view. On mobile, move your phone to see sky, ground and horizon. This is an artist's interpretation.

Where the Grass is Always Redder

Kepler 186f

Kepler-186f is the first Earth-size planet discovered in the potentially 'habitable zone' around another star, where liquid water could exist on the planet's surface. Its star is much cooler and redder than our Sun. If plant life does exist on a planet like Kepler-186f, its photosynthesis could have been influenced by the star's red-wavelength photons, making for a color palette that's very different than the greens on Earth. This discovery was made by Kepler, NASA's planet hunting telescope.

More to Explore

  • 55 Cancri e: Skies Sparkle Above a Never-Ending Ocean of Lava

    Planet Janssen, or 55 Cancri e, orbits a star called Copernicus only 41 light years away.

  • Kepler-186f Coloring Page

    What tones will you pick to color Kepler-186f? Grab crayons, markers, paint or colored pencils and color in the coloring page based on our popular Exoplanet Travel Bureau poster for the planet with a red sun.

  • Exoplanet Types Infographic

    Exoplanets, planets beyond our solar system, whether orbiting other stars or floating freely between them, can make the planets closer to home look tame by comparison.

Explore the planet types: Gas Giant, Neptune-like, Super-Earth and Terrestrial

Or move on to the building blocks of galaxies: stars!

Super Earth News