mjah Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 So cool. Planet found which could conceivably harbor life as we know it Get ready for quite a few more of these over the next few decades. This is only the beginning. Some excerpts... ----- This remarkable discovery appears to confirm the suspicions of most astronomers that the universe is swarming with Earth-like worlds. We don't yet know much about this planet, but scientists believe that it may be the best candidate so far for supporting extraterrestrial life. The new planet, which orbits a small, red star called Gliese 581, is about one-and-a-half times the diameter of the Earth. It probably has a substantial atmosphere and may be covered with large amounts of water - necessary for life to evolve - and, most importantly, temperatures are very similar to those on our world. It is the first exoplanet (a planet orbiting a star other than our own Sun) that is anything like our Earth. ... Astrobiologists - scientists who study the possibility of alien life - refer to a climate known as the Goldilocks Zone, where it is not so cold that water freezes and not so hot that it boils, but where it can lie on the planet's surface as a liquid. In our solar system, only one planet - Earth -lies in the Goldilocks Zone. Venus is far too hot and Mars is just too cold. This new planet lies bang in the middle of the zone, with average surface temperatures estimated to be between zero and 40c (32-102f). Lakes, rivers and even oceans are possible. It is not clear what this planet is made of. If it is rock, like the Earth, then its surface may be land, or a combination of land and ocean. ... Just because Gliese 581c is habitable does not mean that it is inhabited, but we do know its sun is an ancient star - in fact, it is one of the oldest stars in the galaxy, and extremely stable. If there is life, it has had many billions of years to evolve. This makes this planet a prime target in the search for life. According to Seth Shostak, of the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute in California, the Gliese system is now a prime target for a radio search. 'We had actually looked at this system before but only for a few minutes. We heard nothing, but now we must look again.' By 2020 at least one space telescope should be in orbit, with the capability of detecting signs of life on planets orbiting nearby stars. If oxygen or methane (tell-tale biological gases) are found in Gliese 581c's atmosphere, this would be good circumstantial evidence for life. ... The real importance is not so much the discovery of this planet itself, but the fact that it shows that Earth-like planets are probably extremely common in the Universe. There are 200 billion stars in our galaxy alone and many astronomers believe most of these stars have planets. The fact that almost as soon as we have built a telescope capable of detecting small, earth-like worlds, one turns up right on our cosmic doorstep, shows that statistically, there are probably billions of earths out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portisizzle Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 Astrobiologists - scientists who study the possibility of alien life Wow. :doh: Are there peanutbutterologists out there as well??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raub Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 That's exciting. We need to hurry up and find another planet....and then figure out a way to get there. This one isn't going to last much longer at the rate we're going. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portisizzle Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 That's exciting. We need to hurry up and find another planet....and then figure out a way to get there. This one isn't going to last much longer at the rate we're going. The drama. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PokerPacker Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 Wow. :doh:Are there peanutbutterologists out there as well??? just because the bible didn't mention life on any planet but earth doesn't meant that it isn't possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portisizzle Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 just because the bible didn't mention life on any planet but earth doesn't meant that it isn't possible. I was making no comment on the possibility of life on that planet. I was simply amused by title of a professional Trekkie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Brave Little Toaster Oven Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 Are there peanutbutterologists out there as well??? Quit making fun of my occupation :mad: :laugh: "So easy, a caveman could do it" didnt work to well for Geico now did it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PokerPacker Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 one of the things about this planet is that only one side faces its star, so that must mean the other half of the planet is pretty damn cold. oh, that and the fact that there is no day and night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PokerPacker Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 Quit making fun of my occupation :mad: :laugh:"So easy, a caveman could do it" didnt work to well for Geico now did it? so what kinds of peanutbutter do you study, and what kinds of bacteria did you discover? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumbo Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 I saw that story earlier to day at work and it really had a lot of us excited, As a kid, I thought that the one thing that might be unique about humans (I never found the other "unique" claims to hold up well) was that we could be the specie that could leave this planet to travel out to the stars and live on other planets. I think there's a great beauty in that idea. Of course, given the pestilence humanity can be, this may not be a thing of beauty for the rest of the galaxy. P.S.--on a side note, mjah--do not send me the membership certificate through snail or e-mail. I'm sure you understand. Just do the traffic light deal and I'll know I've been accepted. And remember, my bad rap with the Alumbrados is exaggerated--if I'd known the dude was the leader I wouldn't have made the green card joke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PokerPacker Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 if only we could figure out how to travel faster than the speed of light... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoGood28 Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 And people claim NASA is a waste of money.:doh: We owe it to the Human race to explore and acquire knowledge about the world around us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamingwolf Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 are there any alien chicks there, cause if there are I want to do them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portisizzle Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 if only we could figure out how to travel faster than the speed of light... That is not near fast enough to get the job done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PokerPacker Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 That is not near fast enough to get the job done. twenty light years, thats 40 years round-trip if we were to travel at the speed of light. if we could figure out how to harness things like worm-holes and what-not, maybe we could figure out a method of creating shortcuts to our destinations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfitzo53 Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 That is not near fast enough to get the job done. Faster being the key word in his sentence. Anyway, one part of these articles that always raises my eyebrow is when they state confidently that life cannot evolve without water. Even on Earth we're finding life forms where we never expected them - at extreme pH levels, in anoxic environments, and even at temperatures above boiling. Can we really state for a fact that water is necessary for life? In a universe full of possibilities, I'm skeptical. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumbo Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 Can we really state for a fact that water is necessary for life? In a universe full of possibilities, I'm skeptical. 1. No. 2. That's good, in my book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raub Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 There's a guy I work with who puts salt on EVERYTHING, including pizza and sausage. I'm pretty sure he's the first sodium-based lifeform. Maybe he has some answers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoony Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 We don't need to travel to the speed of light, we only need find a tear in the fabric of spacetime and jump thru. As for the water issue, I agree with Fitz. It seems rather myopic of Scientists to make such a statement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portisizzle Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 We don't need to travel to the speed of light, we only need find a tear in the fabric of spacetime and jump thru.As for the water issue, I agree with Fitz. It seems rather myopic of Scientists to make such a statement. Where does the science end and the faith begin. Tear fabric? :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoony Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 Where does the science end and the faith begin. Tear fabric? :laugh: Dude... seriously... would you please :stfu: ??? You're like a little boy who wandered into the grown up conversation. Nobody gives a **** about your "faith" theory that you constantly regurgitate in every thread you get the opportunity to do so. Who is even talking about that? mjah posted a cool article... now is the time when we all discuss it. You? You're in here making a jackass out of yourself throwing jabs at everyone hoping someone will take the bait. And this 'faith' theory...It's not even you're own... you jacked it from another poster. I can provide a link if need be. So not only are you extremely immature, you're also unoriginal and can't think for yourself. Take it somewhere else. Start you're own thread or something. It's tiresome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portisizzle Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 Nu uhhhhh........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portisizzle Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 And this 'faith' theory...It's not even you're own... you jacked it from another poster. I can provide a link if need be. Sure, go ahead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeaconBlue Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 We don't need to travel to the speed of light, we only need find a tear in the fabric of spacetime and jump thru.As for the water issue, I agree with Fitz. It seems rather myopic of Scientists to make such a statement. You're right figuring out worm holes is the answer. As far as the water thing goes.Well. Water is vital to life as "we" know it. I think many scientist have already pondered life based on other substances. We know water works though so can you fault folks for focusing there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mooka Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 Very very cool. Maaaan, we don't know **** about this Universe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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