Gliese 581g is an earth-like planet. Can support life.

[RCA]

http://news.discovery.com/space/earth-l ... -life.html

TL;DR
- A new planet that's the right size and location for life has been discovered 20 light-years away.
- The newly discovered world exists in a solar system very similar to our own but much smaller.
- Gliese 581g's orbit is right in the middle of that system's habitable region, where temperatures would be suitable for liquid water to pool on the planet's surface.
- "Personally, given the ubiquity and propensity of life to flourish wherever it can, I would say that the chances for life on this planet are 100 percent. I have almost no doubt about it," Steven Vogt, professor of astronomy and astrophysics at University of California Santa Cruz
- The question wouldn't be to defend that there is life at Gliese 581g, says Butler. "The question," he said, "would be to demonstrate that there isn't."



Side-note:
Can we allow for larger littles in threads? What's the deal with that?

[ThatGuyRoger]

pretty cool news, I lol'd at this comment

Wow!!!!
Real Estate Investors should be happy

[MinisterofDOOM]

Pretty neat. Even if we were capable of interstellar travel, a 3-times-earth sized planet isn't very useful for human population. But the possibility of other life on that is fascinating.

[scotty-2-forty]

Pretty neat. Even if we were capable of interstellar travel, a 3-times-earth sized planet isn't very useful for human population. But the possibility of other life on that is fascinating.

Eh, it'd probably just be shorter, heavier people with really bad attitudes and a nagging disposition for flatulence.

[scotty-2-forty]

Gliese 581g is an earth-like planet. Can support life.

... Dammit. You guys found me.

[IBCoupe]

I like the comparison of the star in that system (a red dwarf - ha!) to the star in ours that I heard on the radio yesterday: "If our sun is a 100-watt lightbulb, this one is a 1-watt lightbulb. It's like a Christmas tree light."

[Encryptshun]

F*ck. They found us. Now we're gonna have to start paying for our cable.

[_b.jaye_]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100929/ap_ ... new_earths

pretty cool stuff. id just read this on yahoo an hour or so ago before catching this thread.

no clues on whats more accurate info, but this article reads that its a star with about 1/3 our suns strength (whatever that measures) and 6 times closer, so it works out to relatively similar conditions.

[marlin29311]

What's to say that all life is like us? Maybe there are other types of life forms that don't live on things we do...

Lol, just playing devil's advocate.

[Mr1der]

let's go burn styrofoam on it!

[MinisterofDOOM]

What's to say that all life is like us? Maybe there are other types of life forms that don't live on things we do...

Lol, just playing devil's advocate.

I know you're just being a contrary bastard for fun, but we understand life like us best, so it's the kind of life we can look for most thoroughly.

[Razi]

We've found the freaking Zerg!
RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!

[MinisterofDOOM]

We've found the freaking Zerg!
RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!

It's okay, we're on your side. Vorts > Zerg. We have millenia of experience farming oversized bugs.

[Razi]

I play Zerg..maybe that'll keep me on their good side.

[Encryptshun]

Nihilanth>Vorts>Zerg

[s0m3th1ngAZ]

KIlrathi>Vorts>Zerg

Time to load up the Colony ships!!

[Encryptshun]

Christopher Blair>Kilrathi

[93coupe]

WTF is TL;DR?

[Dattebayo]

They can't even see the planet, they only know it's there because of gravity wobble in it's sun, which means it's huge. Gravity would be like 2 - 5Gs and they don't even know if it has water yet. They can't even be sure that it is in the "Goldilocks" zone because there are too many variables to take into account. It's also completely tidally locked (imagine living in Alaskan summers all year round).

We can dream tho, right? (just don't pass it off as fact)

[RCA]

WTF is TL;DR?

To Long; Didn't Read.

Usually after a long post people post under it TL;DR...

So I made a lazy short cut built in. If you thought the article was to long, then read the shorter version.

[bcar240]

They can't even see the planet, they only know it's there because of gravity wobble in it's sun, which means it's huge. Gravity would be like 2 - 5Gs and they don't even know if it has water yet. They can't even be sure that it is in the "Goldilocks" zone because there are too many variables to take into account. It's also completely tidally locked (imagine living in Alaskan summers all year round).

We can dream tho, right? (just don't pass it off as fact)

and comments like this guy made are pretty presumptuous:
"The chances for life on this planet are 100 percent," Steven Vogt, a UC professor of astronomy and astrophysics says. "I have almost no doubt about it."
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/09/30/10 ... nd-planet/

Probably just figures that it'll get him some attention and no one will be able to prove him wrong for a long while.

[ThatGuyRoger]

things like this are probably the most dominant species

[IBCoupe]

I'm officially freaked out.

[RCA]

I'm officially freaked out.

No worries, it's a sculpture.

http://kalapusa.deviantart.com/#/d2zk0bd

[alms24sebring]

I heard this on the radio a couple days ago and was excited to hear from it. What worries me is that the parent star is in its red giant stage, basically death, and is said to be 6 times closer than Earth. I dont think thats a good thing. Red giant are exactly like they sound, stars that have burned their fuel supply and blow the outer layers outwards while the interior (white dwarf), burns larger atoms to fight its own gravity. And since it's closer althogh smaller, that hot gas may have stripped the atmosphere, boiled the surface and any possible water/life and the surface, and pouring deadly radiation at the planet as we speak. Also, tidal lock is a problem for me. I dont agree with equalizing temps but I can believe diverse temps.. far extremes. Crucial hot and sunny; sunset/sunrise with possibly comfortable temps; or black night at - 100's F... all the time. I guess it really depends on the star size and other variables

Scientists say that our own sun is the right size to die as a red giant. The sun's outer layers will expand to about to the asteroid belt (it's uncertain), destroying the planets within the gas.

Water is also not promised or proven, neither is life but its a good find. Its unclear even what the atmosphere is made of. Astronomers can't find any planets as small as Earth, in fact 3x the Earth is the smallest Ive heard of. I believe this is the 1st planet that is relativly Earths size, rocky, and in the 'habitable zone'. I don't think this is the planet that will save us from apocolypse but its definantly one step closer to finding Earth's clone.

Before we can even think about traveling there, we must find light speed first or faster first. 20 ly is a looooong way that will take generations of travel.

[BusyBadger]

I heard this on the radio a couple days ago and was excited to hear from it. What worries me is that the parent star is in its red giant stage, basically death, and is said to be 6 times closer than Earth.

Here's something else for your excitement & worry circuits. Mark your calendar.

Actually, I'm sure you've been well aware of this for a while.

[zacmil]

What worries me is that the parent star is in its red giant stage, basically death, and is said to be 6 times closer than Earth. I dont think thats a good thing. Red giant are exactly like they sound, stars that have burned their fuel supply and blow the outer layers outwards while the interior (white dwarf), burns larger atoms to fight its own gravity. And since it's closer althogh smaller, that hot gas may have stripped the atmosphere, boiled the surface and any possible water/life and the surface, and pouring deadly radiation at the planet as we speak.

Actually, it's orbiting a red dwarf. Red dwarfs, unless I'm mistaken, are much smaller stars than our Sun. Because they are so much smaller, they consume hydrogen at a slower rate which gives them a pretty long lifespan. Additionally, their low fuel consumption causes these stars to give off a lot less energy than our Sun, so a planet can afford to be a little closer to it.

[darens13]

who else(trekkies) is excited for the possibility of hot alien women? i'd go on that away team.

[alms24sebring]

Actually, it's orbiting a red dwarf. Red dwarfs, unless I'm mistaken, are much smaller stars than our Sun. Because they are so much smaller, they consume hydrogen at a slower rate which gives them a pretty long lifespan. Additionally, their low fuel consumption causes these stars to give off a lot less energy than our Sun, so a planet can afford to be a little closer to it.

O yes, I stand corrected. Well that changes everything. I dont know why I was thinking giant. I think I wrote white dwarf and then changed it to red giant because I knew I saw red lol, I got excited. Well in that case it seems like a better chance for life and/or water. The red dwarfs burn for billions of years and the oldest stars are red dwarfs. who knows how old that planet is too. As long as the right elements and conditions are there, life will happen.

[alms24sebring]

Actually I did not know that. Im suprised the year wasn't 2012 lol. Why does it say Earths distance is .0144?

Still highly unlikely to actually hit, but not impossible. If you were to zoom in, it would probably still be hundreds of thousands of miles away at the closest point.