Earthlike Planet Orbiting Nearby Star

[Dubh Aingeal]

Astronomers in Europe have announced the discovery of a planet with only 5 times the Earth's mass, orbiting a red dwarf star 20 light years away. It orbits the star so closely that it only takes 13 days to go around... but the star is so cool that the temperature of the planet is between 0 and 40 Celsius. At this temperature there could be liquid water. Models indicate the planet is either rocky like the Earth or covered in an ocean. While it's not known if there actually is liquid water on the planet, this is a really big discovery, and indicates that we are getting ever closer to finding another Earth orbiting an alien star.

[n0Mad]

I was just reading that a few minutes ago. I was tempted to start a thread here about it but figured you'd do it anyway. I was right. =)

[Marblez]

Saw that on the news this morning. Was pretty cool.

[kellygrrrrrl]

Facsinating isn't it?

Hrmmmm.....

20 Light years away?

wow...thats far.

[sass_in_the_pants]

It's a hop skip and a jump

I think about life here on Earth, I think about those little bacteria that live at the mouths of the hot gysers at the bottom of the ocean. You think NOTHING can live there, but something does. Not only does something live there, but something ELSE lives on the something that lives there. And something lives on that.

So when I think about what life on earth looks like, which if I didn't know it for myself, I wouldn't be able to guess it, I can't even imagine what another 'earth-like' world would look like.

[know_buddy_kares]

now THAT'S cool... First Pluto gets demoted and looses it's planet status, now we find a possible 2nd earth... boy if there's life on that planet and we find out... i wonder how pissed off the non believers would be that don't believe in life outside our planet for religious reasons.

[Troy Spiral (13)]

I remember the whole "other planets" thing basicly giving me a heart attack in the early 90s when we first started finding out that they actually existed. I was fairly shocked to find out virtually none of my friends and zero of the people in my family had a clue that this was "news" and assumed that we already knew about other planets (or they cared so little that it was non-news anyhow)

The reason this is news is not that its a planet. But that its a "terrestrial" planet that is , at least somewhat earth like. (hopefully) The 100+ (yep really) planets we have found out about so far are always massive gas-filled giant type planets. The shit is so far away that its very hard to detect terrestrial planets and on the big massive bastards are fairly easily detected.

Often the science news stuff is like "OH REALLY? COOL!" but under the breath (errr.. i thought we had that or knew about that already? guess not! lol)

[know_buddy_kares]

hmm.. for all we know, we may have already found life on one of these planets, but fear from bringing the public in a panic attack, or enraged denials, the findings have not been released into the public. If that idea is true, perhaps tidbits of information about this are only thrown out as bait to see what the responses are.

*EDIT ADD*

This also reminds me of the time scientists found worms or the fossil remains of worms on an asteroid. I didn't keep up with that like I wanted, last I heard there was the idea that this "asteroid" came from earth. I think this is something that those in denial came up with because I think the chances of a chunk of earth being flung into space by a meteor impact on the planet.. possible. Having a living organism on such piece of rock... not as possible. Having the remains stay intact instead of being vaporized, burned to ash, crushed, ect.... very improbable. And lastly, if all happened, having said chunk of rock being flung to the far reaches of space for hundreds (maybe thousands) of years, and somehow finding it's way back to earth... next to impossible.

Not completely nay saying this however. It's just highly improbable, and the chances of it being from somewhere else more probable.

ALSO, there's a planet in our solar system with legit signs that there once was life, an intelligent form of life too... Mars. They've photos of pyramids like the ones in Egypt, as well as a sculpted face exactly like the one of the Sphynx in Egypt.

[BrassFusion]

that's a strange paranoid thought you've got there, kbk, but not entirely out of the realm of possibility, lol...

but the second they send a rocket out there to build a brewery i'm moving. so i'll be like 44 or 45 when i got there...

edit: uh, if the ship were to travel at the speed of light. lol.

DAMN I WANNA LIVE ON ANOTHER PLANET

[know_buddy_kares]

LOL, given if this "newly found planet" was completely capable of supporting our life. And lets say there WAS a such ship that was within our control that could go light speed.... best pack your bags for a LLLLOOONNNGGG trip, at light speed, it would take you 20 years to eventually reach that planet.

[BrassFusion]

LOL, given if this "newly found planet" was completely capable of supporting our life. And lets say there WAS a such ship that was within our control that could go light speed.... best pack your bags for a LLLLOOONNNGGG trip, at light speed, it would take you 20 years to eventually reach that planet.

just enough time to train myself to breathe their atmosphere and survive on little to no oxygen

[know_buddy_kares]

just bring a few plants with you!

[BrassFusion]

heh a bed a bar and a greenhouse that's all i need

[Troy Spiral (13)]

I vote for Jeb.