The discovery of a giant alien planet has fuelled speculation that the world predicted to unleash an apocalypse on Earth actually exists.

Researchers announced the discovery of the new planet that's so gigantic, they're not really sure if it even qualifies as a planet, this week.

The snappily-titled OGLE-2016-BLG-1190Lb was seen using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope and is estimated to be over 13 times the mass of Jupiter. It is so large, experts are questioning whether or not it's actually some sort of failed star.

But, now doomsayers have speculated that it could be Nibiru, or Planet X, the world that will allegedly cause the end of Earth.

(Image: Getty)

The Nibiru cataclysm is the name given to a disastrous encounter between the Earth and a large planet, which certain groups believe will take place in the early 21st century.

Believers think that Nibiru is hurtling through space and will appear in our skies at any moment.

Some users on conspiracy theory website Godlikeproductions.com questioned whether OGLE-2016-BLG-1190Lb's discovery could be proof that the end is nigh.

'Daniel' started a thread on the forum titled: "Has Nibiru Been Hiding in the Heart of Our Galaxy All Along?," in which people speculated about the existence of the apocalyptic planet.

Alternatively, researchers have speculated that OGLE might not even be a planet.

(Image: PA)

It could be a "brown dwarf" - an object that has a heavier mass than the gas giant but isn't quite up to being a fully-fledged star.

The cutoff point is an object with between 13 and 14 times the mass of Jupiter. So this new discovery does fall into that category.

“Since the existence of the brown dwarf desert is the signature of different formation mechanisms for stars and planets, the extremely close proximity of OGLE-2016-BLG-1190Lb to this desert raises the question of whether it is truly a ‘planet’ (by formation mechanism) and therefore reacts back upon its role tracing the galactic distribution of planets,” explained the authors of the study .

Sadly, considering its 22,000 light years away, it's unlikely we'll be able nip over and have a look for ourselves any time soon.