An international team of scientists led by Kori Bird from the University of California, Irvine, has discovered the super-Earth Gliese 251 c, which may be suitable for life. The planet orbits the red dwarf GJ 251 in the constellation Gemini.

Super-Earths are rocky planets with a mass greater than Earth's but less than Neptune's. They typically form around stars with high metallicity, but are rarely found near red dwarfs with low metallicity.

The discovery was made based on data from five spectrographs—HIRES, CARMENES, SPIRou, HPF, and NEID. The researchers analyzed more than 900 radial velocity measurements collected from the late 1990s to early 2024.

GJ 251 c completes an orbit around its star in 53.6 days and is located within the habitable zone. The planet's mass is 3.8 times that of Earth. Previously, in 2020, another super-Earth—GJ 251 b with an orbital period of 14.2 days—was discovered around the same star.

The red dwarf GJ 251 has a luminosity of just 1.5% that of the Sun and low metallicity. Despite this, such stars are considered promising targets in the search for habitable worlds—their small size makes it easier to detect planetary signals, and rocky planets can retain heat even on close orbits.

To distinguish planetary signals from stellar activity noise—such as spots, flares, and rotation—the researchers used the Gaussian process method, which allowed them to confirm the existence of both planets.

GJ 251 c will become a priority target for future telescopes, including the Extremely Large Telescope, the Thirty Meter Telescope, and the Giant Magellan Telescope. The planet is considered one of the best candidates for direct imaging in the northern sky. Direct imaging will make it possible to study the planet's atmosphere, climate, and the conditions necessary for life to arise.

The results of the study have been published in The Astronomical Journal.