Closest Confirmed Exoplanets — Fact-Based Reference (NASA/Caltech + Peer-Reviewed)

Closest Confirmed Exoplanets

This page lists nearby confirmed exoplanets and summarizes their host stars, measured (or catalog-estimated) masses/radii, and orbital parameters. It intentionally avoids “life” claims and other unsupported inferences. When a value is a catalog estimate (common for radius in RV-only planets), it is labeled. Last updated: 2025-12-19

Primary data: NASA Exoplanet Catalog + NASA Exoplanet Archive (Caltech/IPAC) Confirmations: peer-reviewed papers (when relevant)

Method and definitions

How to interpret “habitability” here

Habitability is not asserted. This page only reports cataloged parameters and (where a source explicitly states it) whether the planet’s stellar irradiation places it in or near a published “habitable zone” definition. Being in an HZ is an irradiance criterion, not evidence of liquid water, a breathable atmosphere, or biology.

What “confirmed” means here

The planets below are treated as confirmed because they appear as confirmed entries in the NASA Exoplanet Catalog / Archive and/or have peer-reviewed confirmation papers.

Common measurement caveats (reported as facts)

Many nearby small planets are detected by radial velocity. For RV-only planets, the quoted mass is usually a minimum mass (m·sin(i)) unless inclination is known. Radii are often catalog estimates (not directly measured by transit).

Systems on this page

Closest first (approx.)

Proxima Centauri b Barnard’s Star b–e Ross 128 b Wolf 1061 b–d GJ 1061 b–d GJ 411 b Teegarden’s Star b–c

Proxima Centauri b

Host distance: ~4.24 ly (~1.30 pc)

Proxima Centauri b is the closest known confirmed exoplanet in orbit around the nearest star to the Sun (Proxima Centauri, part of the Alpha Centauri system).

Host star

Name: Proxima Centauri
Star type (catalog): M-type (red dwarf)
Distance: ~4.24 light-years (~1.30 pc)

Planet parameters (NASA catalog)

Planet type: Super-Earth (classification)
Discovery method / year: Radial Velocity / 2016
Orbital period: ~11.2 days
Orbital radius (semi-major axis): ~0.0485 AU
Mass: ~1.055 Earth masses (RV-derived; typically minimum mass unless inclination known)
Radius: ~1.02 Earth radii (catalog estimate)

Habitability-relevant facts (source-limited)

“Habitable zone” statements: The discovery/early characterization literature discusses Proxima b in the context of the star’s habitable zone by irradiation criteria. This is not evidence of surface liquid water.

Primary references

NASA catalog entry: science.nasa.gov — Proxima Centauri b
Context/irradiation paper: Ribas et al. (2016), A&A

Barnard’s Star b–e

Host distance: ~6 ly (Barnard’s Star)

Barnard’s Star is the nearest single star to the Sun. A set of sub-Earth planets (b–e) has been reported and confirmed using extreme-precision radial velocities.

Host star

Name: Barnard’s Star
Star type: M dwarf
Distance: ~6 light-years

System-level constraints (peer-reviewed)

Detection: Extreme precision radial velocity (MAROON-X + ESPRESSO)
HZ constraint (reported): The combined RV data constrain (rule out) planets above a stated mass threshold in the habitable-zone period range; see Basant et al. (2025).

Planet b (NASA catalog)

Type: Terrestrial (classification)
Period: ~3.2 days
Orbital radius: ~0.0229 AU
Mass: ~0.299 Earth masses
Radius: ~0.72 Earth radii (catalog estimate)

Planets c, d, e (peer-reviewed summary)

Periods (reported): ~4.124 d (c), ~2.340 d (d), ~6.739 d (e)
Minimum masses (reported range): ~0.19–0.34 Earth masses
Orbit geometry (reported): Nearly circular (in the cited works)

Primary references

NASA catalog (planet b): science.nasa.gov — Barnard b
A&A (initial sub-Earth detection): Hernández et al. (2024), A&A
Confirmation / 4-planet system: Basant et al. (2025), arXiv:2503.08095 (see also ADS record)

Habitability-relevant facts

HZ placement: These short-period planets orbit very close to the star (few-day periods). HZ membership is not claimed for them in the cited confirmations.

Ross 128 b

Host distance: ~3.375 pc (~11.0 ly)

Ross 128 b is a nearby small planet detected by radial velocity around a relatively quiet M dwarf (in the context of M-dwarf activity comparisons).

Host star (NASA Exoplanet Archive)

Name: Ross 128
Distance: 3.37454 pc (~11.0 ly)

Planet parameters (NASA catalog)

Type: Super-Earth (classification)
Discovery method / year: Radial Velocity / 2017
Orbital period: ~9.9 days
Orbital radius: ~0.0496 AU
Mass: ~1.4 Earth masses
Radius: ~1.11 Earth radii (catalog estimate)
Eccentricity: ~0.12

Primary references

NASA catalog: science.nasa.gov — Ross 128 b
NASA Exoplanet Archive overview: exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu — Ross 128 overview

Habitability-relevant facts

HZ discussions: Some official communications describe Ross 128 b as “possibly temperate” or near an HZ boundary by irradiation criteria. This is not a measurement of surface conditions.

Wolf 1061 b–d

Host distance: ~4.306 pc (~14.0 ly)

Wolf 1061 hosts multiple RV-detected planets. Catalog values shown here reflect RV solutions and (where applicable) catalog-estimated radii.

Host star (NASA Exoplanet Archive)

Name: Wolf 1061
Distance: 4.30592 pc (~14.0 ly)

Wolf 1061 b (NASA catalog)

Type: Super-Earth (classification)
Discovery method / year: Radial Velocity / 2015
Period: ~4.9 days
Orbital radius: ~0.0375 AU
Mass: ~1.91 Earth masses
Radius: ~1.21 Earth radii (catalog estimate)
Eccentricity: ~0.15

Wolf 1061 c and d

For the latest c/d parameters, use the NASA Exoplanet Archive system overview (which aggregates peer-reviewed solutions and uncertainties): Wolf 1061 — NASA Exoplanet Archive overview.

Primary references

NASA catalog (b): science.nasa.gov — Wolf 1061 b
Archive overview (system): exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu — Wolf 1061

GJ 1061 b–d

Host distance: ~12 ly (~3.7 pc, see archive/compiled catalogs)

GJ 1061 hosts three RV-confirmed small planets (b–d). Below are NASA catalog entries for planet b and the archive system summary for b–d.

System summary (NASA Exoplanet Archive)

Planets: b, c, d (confirmed)
Discovery method: Radial Velocity
Discovery reference: Dreizler et al. (2020), as aggregated by the archive

Archive overview: GJ 1061 — NASA Exoplanet Archive

GJ 1061 b (NASA catalog)

Type: Super-Earth (classification)
Discovery year: 2020
Period: ~3.2 days
Orbital radius: ~0.021 AU
Mass: ~1.37 Earth masses
Radius: ~1.10 Earth radii (catalog estimate)
Eccentricity: < 0.31

Primary references

NASA catalog (b): science.nasa.gov — GJ 1061 b
Archive overview (b–d): exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu — GJ 1061

Habitability-relevant facts

HZ placement: Not asserted here. Use published insolation/stellar parameters if you need a strict irradiance-zone classification.

GJ 411 b

Nearby RV planet around an M dwarf

GJ 411 b is a nearby RV-detected planet with a cataloged mass in the super-Earth range.

Planet parameters (NASA catalog)

Type: Super-Earth (classification)
Discovery method / year: Radial Velocity / 2019
Period: ~12.9 days
Orbital radius: ~0.07879 AU
Mass: ~2.69 Earth masses
Radius: ~1.45 Earth radii (catalog estimate)
Eccentricity: ~0.06

Primary references

NASA catalog: science.nasa.gov — GJ 411 b
Archive overview: exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu — GJ 411

Teegarden’s Star b–c

Two nearby small planets (RV)

Teegarden’s Star hosts at least two small RV-detected planets. Below are NASA catalog parameters for planet b, plus an archive overview link for the system.

Teegarden’s Star b (NASA catalog)

Type: Super-Earth (classification)
Discovery method / year: Radial Velocity / 2019
Period: ~4.9 days
Orbital radius: ~0.0259 AU
Mass: ~1.16 Earth masses
Radius: ~1.05 Earth radii (catalog estimate)

System overview (b and c)

NASA Exoplanet Archive overview (lists b and c, discovery method, periods, and references): Teegarden’s Star — NASA Exoplanet Archive

Primary references

NASA catalog (b): science.nasa.gov — Teegarden’s Star b
Archive overview: exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu — Teegarden system

Habitability-relevant facts

HZ placement: Not asserted here. Use published stellar luminosity + orbital separation to compute irradiation if needed, and cite the method.