Gaia-4 b
Gaia-4 b is a cold gas giant orbiting Gaia-4 in the constellation Canes Venatici. It lies about 240 light-years from Earth and was discovered in 2025 using the astrometry method.
Is Gaia-4 b in the Habitable Zone?
The position of Gaia-4 b relative to the habitable zone of Gaia-4 cannot be precisely determined from the available orbital data.
Habitable zone of Gaia-4: 0.256–0.648 AU (conservative: 0.325–0.614 AU), per Kopparapu et al. (2014). Earth orbits the Sun at 1 AU.
See the full interactive habitable-zone view in the Exoplanet Explorer app ›
Orbit and Year Length
A year on Gaia-4 b — one full orbit around Gaia-4 — lasts 571.3 Earth days, longer than an Earth year. Its orbit is highly elliptical (eccentricity 0.34), swinging dramatically closer to and farther from its star.
How Was Gaia-4 b Discovered?
Gaia-4 b was discovered in 2025 using the astrometry method, with observations from European Space Agency (ESA) Gaia Satellite.
Astrometry detects a planet by measuring the tiny periodic shift in a star's position on the sky as the star and planet orbit their common center of mass.
How Far Away Is Gaia-4 b?
Gaia-4 b is 239.7 light-years (73.5 parsecs) from Earth. Light arriving here tonight left the planet around the year 1787. A probe traveling at the speed of Voyager 1 — about 17 km/s, the fastest outbound spacecraft ever launched — would need roughly 4,218,720 years to make the journey.
The Host Star: Gaia-4
Gaia-4
- Surface temperature
- 4,034 K (Sun: 5,772 K)
- Mass
- 0.64 M☉
- Radius
- 0.62 R☉
- Luminosity
- 0.1001 L☉
- Age
- 6.8 billion years (Sun: 4.6)
Planetary System
Gaia-4 b is the only planet known to orbit Gaia-4 so far.
Gaia-4 b — Complete Data
| Mass | 3,750.38 Earth masses (11.800 Jupiter masses) |
|---|---|
| Orbital period | 571.30 days |
| Eccentricity | 0.338 |
| Distance from Earth | 239.7 light-years (73.5 parsecs) |
| Constellation | Canes Venatici |
| Discovery method | Astrometry |
| Discovery facility | European Space Agency (ESA) Gaia Satellite |
| Discovery year | 2025 |
Data: NASA Exoplanet Archive, last updated 2025-02-12. Earth Similarity Index: PHL @ UPR Arecibo.
Frequently Asked Questions About Gaia-4 b
Is Gaia-4 b habitable?
Gaia-4 b is not known to orbit within the habitable zone of Gaia-4, and as a cold gas giant it is an unlikely candidate for life as we know it.
How far away is Gaia-4 b?
Gaia-4 b is about 240 light-years from Earth in the constellation Canes Venatici. A spacecraft traveling as fast as Voyager 1 (about 17 km/s) would need roughly 4,218,720 years to get there.
How long is a year on Gaia-4 b?
One orbit around Gaia-4 takes 571.3 Earth days.
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