Astronomers recently discovered a distant star system estimated to be almost the age of the universe. The system seems to have five planets similar to the Earth while its solar system has similarities to ours.

A team from the University of Birmingham deciphered data from NASA's Kepler spacecraft and space telescope and announced their findings this week.

Like Us on Facebook

This particular solar system, dubbed Kepler-444, was apparently detected using asteroseismology, which means the team listened to the sound pulses given off by the system's host star. The pulses represented a dynamic shift of the star's brightness and scientists used these to measure and date this star.

Whenever this pulse changes, it means a passing planet has blocked the brightness of the star. This is a sign a planet is orbiting or transiting in front of the star.

Using this method, Kepler discovered hundreds of exoplanets in distant star systems. It also allows scientists to determine which exoplanets are habitable ones depending on their size and composition.

According to Tiago Campante of the University of Birmingham's School of Physics and Astronomy, these Earth sized exoplanets were formed some 13.8 billion years ago. These new exoplanets also provide pivotal clues as to how the universe was formed and how ancient life began.

These exoplanets are among the oldest ones ever discovered and could help determine at what point in time life flourished during the era of planet formation.

NASA's Kepler spacecraft was launched in 2009 to search for exoplanets, specifically those in the habitable zone. Planets in this zone orbit at a moderate distance from its parent star, and might have conditions that are perfect for liquid water to exist.

Water formation on the surface of exoplanets and a rocky composition with a similar size as Earth's are pivotal characteristics scientists look for in habitable planets outside the solar system.

To date, the Kepler spacecraft has detected over 1,000 confirmed exoplanets. These findings were published in The Astrophysical Journal.

TagsAncient Solar System as Old as the Universe Has Five Earth-like Planets, Kepler space telescope, kepler spacecraft, NASA, oldest solar system in the universe, earth-like planets, kepler-444, ancient solar system, Exoplanets