Is there life outside of Earth's universe? There might be, and there might even be what scientists are calling "Infant Earths" that have similar planetary conditions that sustain life.

According to new research released last week, the discovery of these infant Earths may hold the key to alien life, as well as searching and travelling to distant planets. Venturing to these existing infant Earths may rely on the Goldilocks principle: the planets cannot be too hot or too cold; it has to be just right for any kind of life to exist.

The newest research posits that we should be able to pinpoint exactly where habitable planets are and therefore seek out life. According to the research, they are calling this method the "habitable zone of young planets": It is a region close to a star in which water can exist as a liquid. Where there is water, there is possible sign of life, International Business Times (IBT) reported.

The findings, conducted by researchers at Cornell University in upstate New York, stated that these Earth-like planets may now be more obvious than was previously thought.

"The search for new, habitable worlds is one of the most exciting things human beings are doing today and finding infant Earths will add another fascinating piece to the puzzle," Lisa Kaltenegger, associate professor of astronomy in Cornell's College of Arts and Sciences, said via a statement, IBT reported.

Since Earth exists near a star, the Sun, it could mean the same thing for other planets. One of the researchers, according to Science World Report, claimed that Earth has had additional water when it was going through its early phases of development. Similarly, planets that appear at a distance which correspond to modern Earth or Venus could be growing at a rate where they are replenishing themselves with water.  

These habitual zones are located further away from young stars than previously thought. With an increased distance, these infant planets should be seen "by the next generation of ground-based telescopes," Science World Report noted.

These habitual zones are neither too hot nor too cold, which indicates the presence of water. The planets that orbit the stars are located within these zones, and, once these zones are tested by astronomers, they could be the best way in finding habitable planets, IBT reported.

Kaltenegger and Ramses M. Ramirez's study offers estimates for where you can find these habitable infant Earths. They also assess the maximum amount of water loss for rocky planets that have equivalent distances to Venus, Earth, Mars and even our Sun, From Quarks to Quasars reported.

The study also posits how certain environmental factors could affect the planets' development, which could make it uninhabitable. For example, if the star is older, then it could have caused the orbiting planet to lose several hundred oceans of water or more. And, if there was a greenhouse effect that had been triggered, the planet could still become habitable if water is later delivered to the said planet after the phase ended, From Quarks to Quasars reported.

The study and its findings are expected to be published in the "Astrophysical Journal Letters" next year.