Scientists find evidence of "Super earths" huddled together, potentially with water.

Scientists have identified three new planets around a star they already suspected of hosting a trio of worlds. It means this relatively nearby star, Gliese 667C, now has three so-called super-Earths orbiting in its "habitable zone". This is the region where temperatures ought to allow for the possibility of liquid water, although no-one can say for sure what conditions are really like on these planets. Gliese 667C is 22 light-years away. Astronomers can see it on the sky in the constellation of Scorpius (The Scorpion).

Previous studies of Gliese 667C had established there were very probably three planets around it, with its habitable zone occupied by one super-Earth - an object slightly bigger than our home world, but very probably with a rocky surface. Now, a team of astronomers led by Guillem Anglada-Escude of the University of Göttingen, Germany, and Mikko Tuomi, of the University of Hertfordshire, UK, has re-examined the system and raised the star's complement of planets.

The researchers used a suite of telescopes including the 3.6m telescope at the Silla Observatory in Chile. This incorporates the high-precision Harps instrument. Harps employs an indirect method of detection that infers the existence of orbiting planets from the way their gravity makes a parent star appear to twitch in its motion across the sky.

Full Article:
www.bbc.co.uk...

Pretty interesting stuff, couldn't find any other threads mentioning this so thought I'd post something for the first time in years.

Like the article says, it's not just that these planets maybe capable of sustaining life, but that it seems likely that previous estimates of how many such planets are out there are conservative. I think the day is fast approaching where we actually find another planet that contains water, and who knows where it'll go from there.

Originally posted by chebob
. I think the day is fast approaching where we actually find another planet that contains water, and who knows where it'll go from there.

Mars has water....

It's a cool story, but it doesn't really surprise me.
I think life is MUCH more abundant than people think.

Water is also most likely a common molecule.

"There might, in fact, be more habitable-zone planets in the Universe than there are stars, which makes it much easier for the future space missions to obtain images of these planets.

Whoa!!!!

That is so awesome!

Originally posted by chebob

Like the article says, it's not just that these planets maybe capable of sustaining life, but that it seems likely that previous estimates of how many such planets are out there are conservative. I think the day is fast approaching where we actually find another planet that contains water, and who knows where it'll go from there.

It will go nowhere!

It's pretty obvious that sooner than later we will find a new earth. However at the end of the day, it doesn't matter one jot whether they find 1 or a million of them because we have no way of getting to them. Every penny should be focused solely on 'propulsion & ultimately energy generation'. Personally I couldn't give a toss whether some telescope in capturing a blurry dot reveals that there is a newly discovered black hole 10,000 light years away or whether we find a new super Jupiter 500 light years away etc, etc, or if some probe lands & finds evidence of water or microbial life in our solar system.

I'd rather see us get the technology that allows us to travel to these places in a matter of mins/hours/days or to actually come face to face with alien lifeforms. That for me should be our only priority in regards to everything 'space' related in the short/medium term!

Originally posted by big_BHOY


I'd rather see us get the technology that allows us to travel to these places in a matter of mins/hours/days or to actually come face to face with alien lifeforms. That for me should be our only priority in regards to everything 'space' related in the short/medium term!

I suppose you can't say anything is impossible, but do you really think you will see that technology in our lifetime? I struggle to think we will have anything like it before we destroy ourselves, even if we last another 500 years.

I'd be quite happy just to be able to see probes sent and return data that shows evidence of life. If nothing else, that itself would probably lead to a lot more funding for such projects as distant space travel. Right now, from the little I know, humans actually travelling to anything outside our solar system is a giant leap in technology, one that would take a completely different society to even start thinking about it, and I'm "supposing" that a large % of the scientific community give it little or no thought right now.

Originally posted by Ghost375

Originally posted by chebob
. I think the day is fast approaching where we actually find another planet that contains water, and who knows where it'll go from there.

Mars has water....

It's a cool story, but it doesn't really surprise me.
I think life is MUCH more abundant than people think.

Water is also most likely a common molecule.

edit on 25-6-2013 by Ghost375 because: (no reason given)

I think he means liquid water. Water ice is very common in the Solar System, and undoubtedly in other systems too, but it takes specific conditions for liquid water to exist on the surface of a planet or a moon: being within a certain distance from its star, a relatively thick atmosphere to provide the pressure, and a magnetic field to keep the atmosphere from being stripped away by the solar wind.

Having said that, Jupiter isn't in the habitable zone, but its moon Europa could potentially harbour life in its vast underground ocean which is kept liquid by the pressure of the crust and the tidal forces from Jupiter.

Originally posted by chebob

I suppose you can't say anything is impossible, but do you really think you will see that technology in our lifetime? I struggle to think we will have anything like it before we destroy ourselves, even if we last another 500 years.

I'd be quite happy just to be able to see probes sent and return data that shows evidence of life. If nothing else, that itself would probably lead to a lot more funding for such projects as distant space travel. Right now, from the little I know, humans actually travelling to anything outside our solar system is a giant leap in technology, one that would take a completely different society to even start thinking about it, and I'm "supposing" that a large % of the scientific community give it little or no thought right now.

In our lifetime the way things have been going, then probably not! That's the point though, priorities are too short sighted! We know they will find Earth twins sooner than later, we know they will find evidence of microbial life (be that past or present) within our own solar system & so on. What then? It's all the bluster from politicians of finding a way to head on out to Earth 2 to plant their nations flag on it, then the scientists tasked with accomplishing the feat begging for more funding every year.

Forget rockets, telescopes & probes & put every penny into next gen endeavours that will see us work our way up to FTL. Even if it ultimately turns out to be impossible, then at least we put our best shot into it & could always return to exploring within our own solar system later on down the line.

It doesn't take a different society because we will never advance much upon upon what we have now (there will always be greed & corruption, power mad individuals/groups & so on). All it really takes is having the funding (imagine if Nasa had saved up a large portion of it's budget over the past few decades until knowledge/technology had advanced enough to let them start on the road to FTL propulsion) & employing the right people with the conviction to get it done.

Ultimately, the breakthrough(s) will come from universities working with a few million in grants before said nations military & space agency (if they have one) jump all over it!

Wonderful news.

However, I am still saddeded at the fact that we contend that a 'habitable' zone is one that resembles the chracteristics of Earth...

to include containing water.

At what point do we deflate our egos and understand that water and other 'Earth qualities', such as being 93 million miles away from our star, are 'habitable' to US because WE live here...

a being on Venus resides in a habitable zone for it, as do Jupitor, Neptune, etc.

Our human arrogance that we are the pinnacle both physically and figuratively of the Universe will keep us from advancing in space exploration.

Originally posted by big_BHOY

Originally posted by chebob

Like the article says, it's not just that these planets maybe capable of sustaining life, but that it seems likely that previous estimates of how many such planets are out there are conservative. I think the day is fast approaching where we actually find another planet that contains water, and who knows where it'll go from there.

It will go nowhere!

It's pretty obvious that sooner than later we will find a new earth. However at the end of the day, it doesn't matter one jot whether they find 1 or a million of them because we have no way of getting to them. Every penny should be focused solely on 'propulsion & ultimately energy generation'. Personally I couldn't give a toss whether some telescope in capturing a blurry dot reveals that there is a newly discovered black hole 10,000 light years away or whether we find a new super Jupiter 500 light years away etc, etc, or if some probe lands & finds evidence of water or microbial life in our solar system.

I'd rather see us get the technology that allows us to travel to these places in a matter of mins/hours/days or to actually come face to face with alien lifeforms. That for me should be our only priority in regards to everything 'space' related in the short/medium term!

I so agree. If every nation could put aside their differences, and focus on a common goal, imagine the possibilities!
It has been said that the Governments have secret technology that would blow our minds. Imagine if they shared such info.

Originally posted by Im2keul

Originally posted by big_BHOY

Originally posted by chebob

Like the article says, it's not just that these planets maybe capable of sustaining life, but that it seems likely that previous estimates of how many such planets are out there are conservative. I think the day is fast approaching where we actually find another planet that contains water, and who knows where it'll go from there.

It will go nowhere!

It's pretty obvious that sooner than later we will find a new earth. However at the end of the day, it doesn't matter one jot whether they find 1 or a million of them because we have no way of getting to them. Every penny should be focused solely on 'propulsion & ultimately energy generation'. Personally I couldn't give a toss whether some telescope in capturing a blurry dot reveals that there is a newly discovered black hole 10,000 light years away or whether we find a new super Jupiter 500 light years away etc, etc, or if some probe lands & finds evidence of water or microbial life in our solar system.

I'd rather see us get the technology that allows us to travel to these places in a matter of mins/hours/days or to actually come face to face with alien lifeforms. That for me should be our only priority in regards to everything 'space' related in the short/medium term!

I so agree. If every nation could put aside their differences, and focus on a common goal, imagine the possibilities!
It has been said that the Governments have secret technology that would blow our minds. Imagine if they shared such info.

If all nations freely shared their 'full' list of discoveries with one another then we would be far, far more advanced. Ingenuity is imo our best trait as a species & if we were all to come together then it would actually be pretty scary thinking about what we could accomplish.

That said, it doesn't even need the world to band together to get it done. Simply the funding (which is why the likes of Nasa should be banking the vast majority of their budget each year for when the time is right) & the right people at the helm to see it through.

reply to post by big_BHOY

It's pretty obvious that sooner than later we will find a new earth. However at the end of the day, it doesn't matter one jot whether they find 1 or a million of them because we have no way of getting to them.

For all we know, we're just one stupid invention away from being able to get there. In about a 100 years, we've gone from riding horses to being able to send man to the moon. So, in a couple hundred more, it isn't too unrealistic to expect we may find a way.

reply to post by chebob


Could you imagine the beings on those planets!? I picture a John Carter type of relation between them, except they are all earths hahaha