A new planet - the lightest exoplanet ever - has now been photographed. The planet orbits a star about 300 light-years from Earth. This may be the smallest planet directly observed outside our solar system, scientists report.

The gaseous planet's photograph was taken by astronomers at The European Space Agency, working with their Very Large Telescope. They found a faint object moving around a distant star. The object is roughly four or five times larger than Jupiter, and may be the lightest alien planet outside our solar system that researchers have found.

Roughly a thousand exoplanets have been detected via techniques such as radical velocity; others still await confirmation. But despite this, only a dozen planets have been directly detected. 

"Direct imaging of planets is an extremely challenging technique that requires the most advanced instruments, whether ground-based or in space, said Julien Rameau, author of the paper detailing the new discovery, in a press release. "Only a few planets have been directly observed so far, making every single discovery an important milestone of the road to understanding giant planets and how they form."

The planet, thus far named HD 95086 b, circles a young star (dubbed HD 95086).  It orbits the host star at around 56 times the distance from the Earth to the Sun. It was sighted by the European Southern Observatory using their Very Large Telescope in Chile. To image the planet, the researchers used NACO, which is an instrument mounted on one of the Unit Telescopes of the Very Large Telescope. By doing so, they could get sharper lines. By using differential imaging and infrared light, they were able to sharpen the contrast between the planet and the star, which allowed them to detect the exoplanet.

Researchers are planning to continue studying HD 95086 b and its star, and hope to use a forthcoming instrument to ascertain whether water vapor or methane exist in the planet's atmosphere.