billvon 2,998 #1 October 17, 2012 After decades of science fiction writers penning stories about the planets circling our closest neighbor, we just found an Earth-sized planet circling one of the stars that makes up the Alpha Centauri system. It's way too close to its star to be anything like Earth (closer than Mercury is to our sun) but once a star system has one planet discovered, the odds of it having more than one planet are fairly high. The system is four light-years away, and thus it will be a while before we could consider launching anything towards it. Using our best available technology it would still take over a hundred years to reach Alpha Centauri with even a small probe. Still, it's pretty cool that our nearest neighbors have the planets that writers have imagined for years. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ryoder 1,590 #2 October 17, 2012 Well, of course it does; That is why the Robinson family was going there. "There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CarpeDiem3 0 #3 October 17, 2012 QuoteUsing our best available technology it would still take over a hundred years to reach Even at Warp 9 on dilithium crystal power? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,998 #4 October 17, 2012 >Even at Warp 9 on dilithium crystal power? Forget dilithium - if we had antimatter we could cut that down to a few dozen years. Of course we'd probably blow up our own planet first if we ever made (or found) enough of the stuff. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Remster 30 #5 October 17, 2012 Sexy green aliens, here we come! (yes, I know, she's from Orion)Remster Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Arvoitus 1 #6 October 18, 2012 Maybe I've misunderstood something but isn't it more likely that a star has planets circling it then it not having any?Your rights end where my feelings begin. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,998 #7 October 18, 2012 >Maybe I've misunderstood something but isn't it more likely that a star has planets >circling it then it not having any? Way too soon to say. The percentage of stars observed so far that have planets is around 5%, but that's because it's easiest to detect very large planets - so it would be more accurate to say that perhaps 5% of stars have large planets. However they are definitely much more common that we thought 20 years ago. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Abedy 0 #8 October 18, 2012 Well, Centauri women look nice apart from one disturbing facts: They ought to shave their heads (clicky just to imagine a bed-scene...) and males wear their hair in a pompous hairspray-infested crested way... Just to remind you.The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
davjohns 1 #9 October 18, 2012 Thanks for the post. It lead to me looking up Alpha Centauri and reviewing some things. I had forgotten that Pluto was no longer a planet, so I delved into the reason for that while I was at it. Interesting stuff.I know it just wouldnt be right to kill all the stupid people that we meet.. But do you think it would be appropriate to just remove all of the warning labels and let nature take its course. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fearjoburg 0 #10 October 18, 2012 Quote Well, Centauri women look nice apart from one disturbing facts: They ought to shave their heads (clicky just to imagine a bed-scene...) and males wear their hair in a pompous hairspray-infested crested way... Just to remind you. Another fantasy of mine shot to hell Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shazz 0 #11 October 18, 2012 I have traveled many light years to your home world. I hear earth girls are easy? Is this true!? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
piisfish 140 #12 October 18, 2012 QuoteI have traveled many light years to your home world. I hear earth girls are easy? Is this true!?Hi Shah, welcome backscissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shazz 0 #13 October 18, 2012 QuoteQuoteI have traveled many light years to your home world. I hear earth girls are easy? Is this true!?Hi Shah, welcome back Who is this Shah you speak of? Im am Shazz fromt he planet Omicron Persi 6 I bow to LRRRR http://i.qkme.me/35yc3i.jpg Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
killler 2 #14 October 18, 2012 Bill, Why would "REALLY" smart people think that planets are not the norm? I like to think that common sense would lead you to believe that planets are very common and life is also very common, We are not special in any way, shape or form... Just a very small part of the cosmic soup....But then everyone likes to think they are specail..Killler Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,998 #15 October 18, 2012 >Bill, Why would "REALLY" smart people think that planets are not the norm? Smart people might think that planets are the norm. REALLY smart people might wait for evidence of that fact before concluding that . . . Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skydiver30960 0 #16 October 18, 2012 This is a great time in which to live. We're making advances that point to humanity moving in a lot of neat directions (space, medicine). Assuming we don't annihilate ourselves in the meantime... but that's a conversation for another thread, probably in SC. But WRT space exploration, I am honestly a little bummed: we're at a point where we can SEE all this really cool stuff out there, but we're not technologically advanced to GO there yet. It's like we're stuck outside the candy store, leaving smudges on the plate glass window, while all those tantalizing sweets are just out of our reach. And when I say "GO there," I mean ME. Going to other planets. Preferably in some sporty, faster-than-light spaceship, like anything from the Hitchhiker Guide series of books. Elvisio "Well, anything other than the ship powered by bad news, or a Vogon Constructor vessel" Rodriguez Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnMitchell 16 #17 October 18, 2012 Quote REALLY smart people might wait for evidence of that fact before concluding that . . . Really smart people accept that they are not special in time or space, but merely typical. Anyway, it'll take at least four years to get pictures back from our 100 year old space probe. Damn, I feel like a 12th century European right now, just imagining what lays beyond the ocean's horizon. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
killler 2 #18 October 18, 2012 I thought the " Drake equation " was widely held as good starting point for our quest for knowledge ? Anyway... Hat's off to you "smart guy's and girls" Killler.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,998 #19 October 18, 2012 >I thought the " Drake equation " was widely held as good starting point for our quest for knowledge ? It is indeed! And we are filling in more of those coefficients all the time. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
huge 0 #20 October 18, 2012 Quote >I thought the " Drake equation " was widely held as good starting point for our quest for knowledge ? It is indeed! And we are filling in more of those coefficients all the time. We sure are. This might useful for determining "Fp" in the equation, but I'm still trying to figure out a ballpark value for "Bs" http://xkcd.com/384/ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pontiacgtp00 0 #21 October 20, 2012 I wonder if the aliens have named our sun something whacky like Delta Sephicoulous B274 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest #22 October 20, 2012 Quote>Bill, Why would "REALLY" smart people think that planets are not the norm? Smart people might think that planets are the norm. REALLY smart people might wait for evidence of that fact before concluding that . . . +1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jumpwally 0 #23 October 20, 2012 I dunno,,,i'll bet Shah would do her... smile, be nice, enjoy life FB # - 1083 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Abedy 0 #24 October 22, 2012 I have the impression he's rather pickish? But OTOH, you well might be right, 'coz Shah will be Shah... The sky is not the limit. The ground is. The Society of Skydiving Ducks Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnMitchell 16 #25 October 22, 2012 Quote Quote >Bill, Why would "REALLY" smart people think that planets are not the norm? Smart people might think that planets are the norm. REALLY smart people might wait for evidence of that fact before concluding that . . . +1 Ahh, but concluding and supposing are two different things. If we are just supposing, wouldn't the smart thing to suppose is that we and our situation are nothing special? To imagine we are the only system with planets and the only place with intelligent life in the universe seems to me to be the height of conceit. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
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