Kepler discovers smallest planet yet: the size of the Moon

http://is.gd/yr49bP

"A newfound world called Kepler 37 b could easily blend in to the long
and growing list of known extrasolar planets, given its nondescript
name. But the new addition to the catalogue of 800-plus exoplanets
stands out in at least one major respect—it is far smaller than any
planet yet discovered outside of our solar system. In fact, it is just a
shade larger than Earth’s moon."

What's interesting here is that Kepler was originally supposed to be
only sensitive enough to find planets as small as the Earth. In fact, it
was hailed as a major milestone when a planet the size of the Earth was
found, but it's gradually finding planets even smaller, such as ones as
small as Mars, and now one as small as the Moon. That means Kepler's
sensitivity is much higher than they expected.

Yousuf Khan