Astronomers find 7 Earth-size planets where life is possible

[kevindavis007]

Astronomers have found a nearby solar system with seven Earth-sized planets, three of which circle their parent star at the right distance for liquid surface water, raising the prospect of life, research published on Wednesday showed.


The star, known as TRAPPIST-1, is a small, dim celestial body in the constellation Aquarius. It is located about 40 light years away from Earth. Researchers said the proximity of the system, combined with the proportionally large size of its planets compared to the small star, make it a good target for follow-up studies.


They hope to scan the planets' atmospheres for possible chemical fingerprints of life.


"I think that we've made a crucial step towards finding if there is life out there," University of Cambridge astronomer Amaury Triaud told reporters on a conference call on Tuesday.


The discovery, published in this week's issue of the journal Nature, builds on previous research showing three planets circling TRAPPIST-1. They are among more than 3,500 planets discovered beyond the solar system, or exoplanets.


Read More: http://www.isn-news.net/2017/02/astronomers-find-7-earth-size-planets.html

[kevindavis007]

Space Ping!


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[bigheadfred]

Space Ping!

I caught a little bit on the nightly news as I got home. Three planets in the Goldilocks Zone?

[kevindavis007]

I caught a little bit on the nightly news as I got home. Three planets in the Goldilocks Zone?

I think so.. I think it is only a matter of time we truly find a planet like ours.

[bigheadfred]

I think so.. I think it is only a matter of time we truly find a planet like ours.

Be nice to have the propulsion tech to go looking in person.

[kevindavis007]

Be nice to have the propulsion tech to go looking in person.

I agree.. Instead of focusing on this planet, NASA should focus more on developing propulsion to get us to a planets that is far away.

[InHeavenThereIsNoBeer]

The star, known as TRAPPIST-1, is a small, dim celestial body in the constellation Aquarius.

I wonder what they call the constellation our star is in.

[kevindavis007]

I wonder what they call the constellation our star is in.

Who knows... I think they will stay away from this planet.

[kevindavis007]

[geronl]

s-t-r-e-t-c-h

A lot of wishful thinking. Take the thinnest science and stretch it beyond recognition. This happens a lot.

 Reminds me of the archaeologists who find a toe bone or a spear tip and describe a whole intricate civilization based on them.

[kevindavis007]

[ABX]

40 light years and 7 in the zone or close to it makes it potentially worth focusing on for a while. Not that we can travel there now, but it seems a better option than many findings so far.

[geronl]

40 light years and 7 in the zone or close to it makes it potentially worth focusing on for a while. Not that we can travel there now, but it seems a better option than many findings so far.

7 lotto numbers is better than one, I guess

[kevindavis007]

40 light years and 7 in the zone or close to it makes it potentially worth focusing on for a while. Not that we can travel there now, but it seems a better option than many findings so far.

It is only a matter of when that we truly find a planet like ours.

[Idaho_Cowboy]

I'm packed when do we leave?

[Doug Loss]

Kepler Data on TRAPPIST-1 Coming Online

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

40 light years and 7 in the zone or close to it makes it potentially worth focusing on for a while. Not that we can travel there now, but it seems a better option than many findings so far.

 


It's cool. Depends on the goal, but it'd be easier/cheaper just to build a giant "ringworld" in space than settling these planets, no?

[Doug Loss]

 


It's cool. Depends on the goal, but it'd be easier/cheaper just to build a giant "ringworld" in space than settling these planets, no?

Probably no, actually.

[bigheadfred]

Probably no, actually.

Make the original ring out of aluminum foil. Then add stronger materials later. Epoxies or other composites. Throw a 3d builder machine out there and let it have at. Feed it material when you can.

[Oceander]

 


It's cool. Depends on the goal, but it'd be easier/cheaper just to build a giant "ringworld" in space than settling these planets, no?

Probably not. In addition to the issues of getting material in place, dealing with the mechanics of it - slight variations in orbit might result in so much gravitational stress it gets ripped to shreds - there is the issue of dealing with both Solar wind and cosmic rays.  Ringworlds sound neat, but I think the realities of radiation exposure will keep them in the sci-fi books for a long, long time. 

[Doug Loss]

TRAPPIST-1h: Drawing on K2 Data

The data recently made available from Campaign 12 of K2 (the Kepler spacecraft’s two-reaction wheel mission) is already paying off in the form of information about the outermost planet in the TRAPPIST-1 system. Campaign 12 (described in Kepler Data on TRAPPIST-1 Coming Online) began on December 15 of 2016 and ran until March 4 of this year, though the spacecraft was in safe mode for a time, producing a 5-day data loss.

An international team including lead author Rodrigo Luger (University of Washington) and TRAPPIST-1 planet discoverer Michaël Gillon (Université de Liège) used the K2 data to constrain the period of TRAPPIST-1h, the outermost planet in this seven-planet system, which had only been observed to transit once before now. The team was also looking for additional planets (none were found) and, of course, examining resonances with the inner worlds.

[thackney]

Probably not. In addition to the issues of getting material in place, dealing with the mechanics of it - slight variations in orbit might result in so much gravitational stress it gets ripped to shreds - there is the issue of dealing with both Solar wind and cosmic rays.  Ringworlds sound neat, but I think the realities of radiation exposure will keep them in the sci-fi books for a long, long time.

Mining and manufacturing in the asteroid belt seems a LOT more likely than FTL transportation.

Perhaps even more likely is mining out and spinning a bigger asteroid with sufficient metalic content for shielding.

[Oceander]

Mining and manufacturing in the asteroid belt seems a LOT more likely than FTL transportation.

Perhaps even more likely is mining out and spinning a bigger asteroid with sufficient metalic content for shielding.

Rendezvous with Rama?

[bigheadfred]

Mining and manufacturing in the asteroid belt seems a LOT more likely than FTL transportation.

Perhaps even more likely is mining out and spinning a bigger asteroid with sufficient metalic content for shielding.

@Oceander

16 Psyche.

[Oceander]

@Oceander

16 Psyche.

With a diameter 5 times the length of Clark's Rama, could be interesting.  Wiki says it's theorized to be the exposed metallic core of a proto-planet.