Earth really IS special: None of the 700 million trillion planets in our known universe are similar to our own, study finds

'Copernican principle' states Earth doesn't hold a privileged position

The latest study challenges this belief by modelling the known universe

None of the known 700 quintillion possible planets look like Earth

Earth's young age and position within the Milky Way makes it unique

There are believed to be 700 million trillion terrestrial planets in the known universe.

Scientists have long believed that among them are worlds similar to our own.

This is known as the 'Copernican principle', which states that our planet doesn't hold a privileged position in the cosmos.

Now, a new study has turned that principle on its head by suggesting that Earth may well be one of a kind.
There are believed to be 700 million trillion terrestrial planets in the known universe. Scientists have long believed that among them are worlds similar to our own. This is known as the ‘Copernican principle’, which states that our planet doesn’t hold a privileged position in the cosmos

+4

There are believed to be 700 million trillion terrestrial planets in the known universe. Scientists have long believed that among them are worlds similar to our own. This is known as the 'Copernican principle', which states that our planet doesn't hold a privileged position in the cosmos

Astronomer Erik Zackrisson from Uppsala University in Sweden has been using computer simulations to model all of the terrestrial planets likely to exist in the universe.

According to an in-depth report in Scientific American, his computer model created a miniature digital copy of the early universe.

He then inputed all the exoplanet data they had from probes such as Kepler, and modelled what would happen to these planets given the known laws of physics.

full article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3455512/Earth-really-special-None-700-million-trillion-planets-known-universe-similar-study-finds.html