Discovery of New Earthlike Planet
By wealth168
@wealth168 (409)
Singapore
April 26, 2007 5:50am CST
A team of European astronomers had recently discovered a new planet which is five times as massive as the Earth. It is the smallest of the 200 or so planets that are known to exist outside our solar system and is about 20 light-years away in the constellation Libra. It orbits around a dim red star known as Gliese 581.
Astronomers need more observations before they can conclude that liquid water was existent there. The new planet is much closer to its star than Earth is to the Sun. The red dwarf Gliese 581 is only about a hundredth as luminous as the Sun.
Dr. Stephane Udry of the Geneva Observatory estimated that temperatures on the surface of the new planet should be in the range of 0 degrees to 40 degrees Centigrade.
You can read about this news from:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/25/science/space/25planet.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Do you think that life exists outside our solar system? If the new Earthlike Planet can be inhabited by human beings, would you like to live there? Why or why not?
2 people like this
3 responses
@silverlou (372)
•
26 Apr 07
I feel sure that there is other forms of life than just that which exists here. It would be ignorant of anyone to think that we are alone, even if the life out there is in the form of some bacteria, it would be a huge finding and proof that life can develop elsewhere.
It would be amazing if life similar to our own planets existed or existed before, imagine those in the future who may get to venture to a distant planet to discover remnants of creatures or maybe civilisations which existed long before us, or you they could discover a fully functional society, whether this would be good or bad for humanity ww will have to wait and see.
@rsa101 (38166)
• Philippines
26 Apr 07
Interesting indeed but when I read and hear that it is about 20 light years away from us I kinda think twice if we ever gonna reach that far with the technology we have right now. We have just broken the sound barrier speed and I think that is not enough to reach that planet with that speed. If ever that planet is like ours I am suspecting that life already exist in there and we would hurry before they develop species that are intelligent like us. I guess we could only peep into the planet but our journey over there would take us maybe a lifetime before we could finally reach that planet if at all.
1 person likes this
@michelledarcy (5220)
•
26 Apr 07
wow this is really interesting news. At least we might be able to move somewhere if we destroy this planet with all our destructive practices.
It would be interesting to see how religious people view the thoughts that there could be life on other planets. Would thi sbe ut there by our God, or another God?
1 person likes this
