1,284 new planets found by Kepler Space Telescope

The Milky Way just got a lot more crowded — with planets.

Nasa has announced 1,284 new planets orbiting stars outside our solar system, called exoplanets — on top of about 1,000 previously authenticated exoplanets detected by the Kepler Space Telescope since its launch in 2009.

It is the biggest planetary collection to be verified in a single swoop.