Kepler 22-b

This is a remarkable discovery with more here.

I don't know about you, but when I grew up I was taught about the solar system, and lessons finished at Pluto, that was it. It seems that with every day that passes, almost unimaginable discoveries are erm...discovered.

When do we get the generation ships? I'd quite fancy a ticket off this rock.

@W3bbo:

That reminded me that there was a study done a year or two ago that asked whether anyone would volunteer to go on a one-way trip into space with a low probability of actually discovering any habitable planet.

The surprising thing was that many people said they would sign up, but I think if those people actually thought about it seriously for a while they would change their mind. You will essentially be stuck in a tin can out in space for the rest of your life with no way back to a normal life again.

Thirty years from now, we will likely have access to unthinkable biological advances and the singularity, or possibly the worst imaginable hell. If I were to be launched across the galaxy, I would like access to the aforementioned technologies, Zooey Deschanel, and a Marvin like robot.

-Josh

@JoshRoss: Brain the size of a planet and they ask me to open the door

priceless

15 hours ago, W3bbo wrote

When do we get the generation ships? I'd quite fancy a ticket off this rock.

You'd be the "guy who knows everything"...you'd be out the airlock by the time it passes Mars

21 hours ago, vesuvius wrote

This is a remarkable discovery with more here.

I don't know about you, but when I grew up I was taught about the solar system, and lessons finished at Pluto, that was it. It seems that with every day that passes, almost unimaginable discoveries are erm...discovered.

There's still a list of other factors which we don't know about Keppler-22b that would have some bearing on whether life could have formed there. With Earth, the moon, and their comparative size to each other is responsible for creating the tides, tectonic activity, and other features that led to the development of life.

The geologic activity of the planet also will lend to whether it can sustain an atmosphere; likely the reason why Mars lost its atmosphere is because the planet died.

6 minutes ago, blowdart wrote

*snip*

That late?!

Speed is Relative .... how long does it take to pass it ??

27 minutes ago, brian.shapiro wrote

*snip*

There's still a list of other factors which we don't know about Keppler-22b that would have some bearing on whether life could have formed there. With Earth, the moon, and their comparative size to each other is responsible for creating the tides, tectonic activity, and other features that led to the development of life.

The geologic activity of the planet also will lend to whether it can sustain an atmosphere; likely the reason why Mars lost its atmosphere is because the planet died.

There was a guy on Science Friday (I think) recently that talked about the moon and its role in stabilizing the earth's tilt so that the seasons are more mild than they would otherwise. The question was then put to him if the moon weren't here, would the earth still developed as it had, and the guy said yeah, the earth would probably be the same...

14 minutes ago, Minh wrote

*snip*There was a guy on Science Friday (I think) recently that talked about the moon and its role in stabilizing the earth's tilt so that the seasons are more mild than they would otherwise. The question was then put to him if the moon weren't here, would the earth still developed as it had, and the guy said yeah, the earth would probably be the same...

How so? What he's saying sounds contradictory. The earth's tilt is also not the only effect from the moon.

@brian.shapiro, he said without the moon, the earth's tilt would go an additional 8 degrees or something like that... which would effect seasonal temperature, but you wouldn't think by all that much...

What else would the moon affect? So women won't have their monthly visits... Hey! that's a PLUS! I say blow the moon up now!

@Minh:

Tidal forces, tectonic activity.

Here are some articles : http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=moon-life-tides , http://www.astrosociety.org/education/publications/tnl/33/moon2.html , http://www.astronomytoday.com/astronomy/earthmoon.html

The minerals that form the planet also matter, its not a given that just because the planet is within the Goldilocks zone and is small that its Earth-like.

 

@brian.shapiro, yeah... I don't know... I wouldn't say the moon has zero affect on the earth... but gravity is one of the weaker force, I think tectonic has more to do with the earth than the moon...

but I think distance from the sun is huge... it guarantees that the planet is not a gaseous one like Jupiter... I do think having a big brother like Jupiter to scoop out stray extinction-event asteroids might be helpful

@Minh: Gravity is THE force from the moon to recon with. It creates the tides you know.

Jupiter is key for life on earth, it's a giant vacuum cleaner. We saw that with the Schumacher-Levy comet.

Yeah, it's so exciting to find these "Class M" planets when we've only just started looking... It's almost a foregone conclusion that life is abundant...

@Minh: Dídnt they find bacteria inside asteroids?

@Maddus Mattus, it wasn't conclusive if those were bacterial fossils... or was made by natural processes... the jury is still out on that one