'Super-Earths' orbit nearby stars

ok didnt want to put this as news really even tho it is ... just wanted to start a little debate on the subject so ill do my best to post it in the format as news as its from the BBC website..

so here goes!
news.bbc.co.uk...

Link for the full artical and here is some info from it

Planet-hunters have discovered two "super-Earths" orbiting two nearby Sun-like stars.

These rocky planets are larger than the Earth but much smaller than ice giants such as Uranus and Neptune.

Scientists say the discoveries are a step towards finding potentially habitable planets - smaller planets that are comparable to the Earth.

Details of the new planets are described in two papers in the Astrophysical Journal.

Two US-based scientists led the international research effort - Paul Butler from the Carnegie Institution's Department of Terrestrial Magnetism in Washington and Steven Vogt of the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Now some kinda words of my own=======

Woo! supper earths!! BIG MASSIVE EARTHS!! cool heh :] who said we need tiny earths? most of the time its about crappy gas giants we cant live on "unless we live in the atmospher?" you get the point. This is a big step in finding planets that could be like earth but to find HUGE ones?? well even better if you ask me the artical says a bit more "ill do in quotes" so you know its the artical and not me..

and this is what got my attention!

The planets have orbits too close to their stars to support life or liquid water. But, according to Dr Butler, they point the way toward finding other planets in similar orbits around nearby "M-dwarfs" - stars that are typically less than half the mass of the Sun.

M-dwarfs?? our sun? wtf is up with M-Dwarfs? why look for suns that are half the size of our own for life? kinda bizzario

Just amazing they found ROCKS in space that are supper earths "kinda earthy" but to be that big? mm sheesh..

the other day the found a planet more dence than led seems the rocky ones have less density than the gass giants?

Interestng to say the least!

I'm sorry, but i've beaten you to it.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

These rocky planets are larger than the Earth but much smaller than ice giants such as Uranus and Neptune.

You said that.
Ice or a frozen water planet.
Where did that water come from.

Makes me think of Immanuel Velikovsky that said the Deluge of the Bible
came from a cosmic storm.
The Earth caught some water and the outer planets got a big splash
and froze.

Any water get caught on the Moon or Mars?

ED: The article said that, good I can post this on the first thread.
See Ya.


[edit on 12/16/2009 by TeslaandLyne]

why look for suns that are half the size of our own for life? kinda bizzario

ok the comments he made about M dwarfs are in relation to where we are in terms of the exoplanet hunt and finding the holy grail that is being able to detect earth sized planets in the HZ of stars.

The first terrestrial sized planet in the HZ will likely be detected around an M class star by radial velocity becuase its easier to detect a planet of that size around a smaller star. This is becuase the gravitational pull will be greater on a smaller star and the signal bigger.

In short being able to detect planets of 5 earth mass around G type stars means the next step will be an earth mass planet around an M class star in the HZ. Then an earth mass planet around a G type star in the HZ.

I'm pessemistic about planets around M class stars harbouring complex life but who knows until we look?. But we learn more about planet formation, star composition and the general nature of our galaxies solar systems by studying all kinds of stars.

M class stars might be a good place for a civilization to migrate to. They stay on the main sequence alot longer than stars like our own. Giving an incredibly long and stable source of energy.

[edit on 16-12-2009 by yeti101]