New Earth

[simay77]

I just heard on the radio, that a new planet has been discovered and that it has oceans on the planet surface. Can anyone clarify this or did I hear wrong?

[Tormod]

The news is correct, but the bit about the oceans is pure speculation.

 

Here is the source:

ESO 22/07 - Astronomers Find First Earth-like Planet in Habitable Zone

[simay77]

Thanks for that dude, very interesting!!!

[Boerseun]

It's very interesting, I saw it this morning on Yahoo's front page news feeds.

 

What completely and utterly burns my gluteus maximus is that even if we did find a completely and totally Earth-like planet, and spectroscopic analysis of its atmosphere indicates life in all its glory, we will never in my life, or for thousands of years to come, be able to visit it.

 

That sucks.:)

[Tormod]

we will never in my life, or for thousands of years to come, be able to visit it.

 

Ask Bill and his crew, maybe the Prophecy is going there? :)

[simay77]

Never Say Never!!!

[Jay-qu]

There is more to a habitible zone than just liquid water... tidal locking comes to mind - though that would only render 50% of the planet in darkness and possibly 49% of it to hot as its always in the sun!

[Zythryn]

Good point.

However, if it does hold liquid water (which is just speculation) wouldn't that indicate it is not tidally locked? For if it were, the water would burn off the 'day' side?

[Tormod]

I'm surprised that something that orbits a star in 12 days can be anything but a fast-moving rock.

[Jay-qu]

The planet is said to be able to harbour liquid water, it has not yet been discovered. At any rate there is no way we could see the water in liquid form, I think the astronomers would have look at some light that had passed through the planets atmosphere to detect the water - which would have be in gaseos form to some degree.

[Qfwfq]

Good point.

However, if it does hold liquid water (which is just speculation) wouldn't that indicate it is not tidally locked? For if it were, the water would burn off the 'day' side?

Uhm, it doesn't make it impossible, no. There would be convection of the atmosphere with a distillation cycle, depending on the distribution of continents and oceans. There could even be a huge continent facing the sun and most of the ocean in the dark.

 

I'm surprised that something that orbits a star in 12 days can be anything but a fast-moving rock.

Why? Orbit is independent of mass, so long as size is small enough for the point approximation. Certainly, with a year of less than 13 of our days around a red dwarf, life is gonna be different when we get there.

[Jay-qu]

Uhm, it doesn't make it impossible, no. There would be convection of the atmosphere with a distillation cycle, depending on the distribution of continents and oceans. There could even be a huge continent facing the sun and most of the ocean in the dark.

 

Why? Orbit is independent of mass, so long as size is small enough for the point approximation. Certainly, with a year of less than 13 of our days around a red dwarf, life is gonna be different when we get there.

For one it would be very red..

[IMAMONKEY!]

I like red... it's a good color

 

But this is very interesting. Although probably not in my lifetime maybe we'll reach these someday!