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Post by jandl100 on Feb 22, 2017 18:39:56 GMT
.... which is remarkably similar to our own Solar System in some ways. This is a major discovery in that it indicates that the make-up of our own solar system is not so very unusual as it has seemed until now. www.space.com/35790-seven-earth-size-planets-trappist-1-discovery.htmlArtist's impression of a very plausible view from one of the planet's surface ...  |
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Post by MartinT on Feb 22, 2017 21:00:56 GMT
I love the characterisation of 39 light years as 'nearby'! Even if we could achieve 0.1C, that means a 390 year one-way generation ship journey. I think I'll wait before buying my ticket.
Fantastic discovery, though. Jerry, am I right in thinking that a dwarf star is much more stable than our Sol in terms of lifespan?
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Post by jandl100 on Feb 23, 2017 6:55:40 GMT
Well, probes at 0.2c or more are currently being planned and may well be launched to nearby stars in the next 15-20 years.
Even so, it's 200 years to get to this newly discovered planetary system, and then another 39 years for any sensor readings / pictures to be received back on Earth.
We really do need wormhole or warp speed technology to do this properly!
Some dwarf stars are very stable and long lived, others aren't.
There was a bit of fuss recently concerning the Earth-sized rocky planet discovered orbiting our nearest stellar neighbour Proxima Centauri. Could life exist in the nearest planetary system? Well, someone then pointed out that Proxima is a red dwarf star and has extremely vicious radiation storms which regularly bathe any orbiting planets. The theory says that any useful planetary atmosphere would have been stripped within a few million years of its birth date billions of years ago.
But theory has been known to be wrong - and the one certainty when planetary probes are launched in our own solar system is that previously cherished ideas will be trashed!
This new one, though, is a very different type of star to Proxima and will likely have allowed planetary atmospheres to be stable and long lived, like our own.
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Post by MartinT on Feb 23, 2017 7:57:15 GMT
Well, probes at 0.2c or more are currently being planned The big issue to resolve, far greater than engines, is how to protect the probe at that speed from micro-dust and rocks that would go through it like butter. We will need something like the 'protector' mechanism at the front of the ship in Passengers (great film, by the way). I may have mentioned this before  |
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Post by jandl100 on Feb 23, 2017 8:04:42 GMT
You have mentioned that before -- but I suspect it isn't a great issue. The vacuum in space is an amazingly good one - it's only fairly recently that laboratory vacuums have been able to reach that standard on a regular basis. I would guess that the chances of a strike are very low. To paraphrase Douglas Adams; Space is empty. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind- bogglingly empty it is. Anyway - once the earth-based laser driver tech is set up hundreds or thousands of the planned micro-probes can be launched at minimal extra cost. Some will get through. I've not seen Passengers, so the clever protector mech will remain a surprise for me for a while - I'll wait for it to come out on DVD! |
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Post by zippy on Feb 23, 2017 8:53:33 GMT
I hate these 'artists impressions'. I bet it's actually nothing like that at all..
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Post by John on Feb 23, 2017 9:19:35 GMT
Chances of predicting a alien world that far is very unlikely
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Post by Eduardo Wobblechops on Feb 23, 2017 9:32:01 GMT
Well, probes at 0.2c or more are currently being planned The big issue to resolve, far greater than engines, is how to protect the probe at that speed from micro-dust and rocks that would go through it like butter. We will need something like the 'protector' mechanism at the front of the ship in Passengers (great film, by the way). I may have mentioned this before Aye, a deflector shield a la Star Trek is required! Mind you, I have read of the feasibility of using a large disc of water ice to absorb the impacts. |
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Post by jandl100 on Feb 23, 2017 10:10:16 GMT
I hate these 'artists impressions'. I bet it's actually nothing like that at all.. Well, if some of them are water worlds (we might get to find out when the next generation of telescopes come on line) then the seascape with ice is plausible. But the real point of the artists impression is the proximity and size of the other planets in the sky. That's going to be fairly accurate if the technical artist has done their job properly . |
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Post by MartinT on Feb 23, 2017 10:12:16 GMT
Yes, that was used in a novel I read. Was it Pushing Ice by Alastair Reynolds? It's a good idea, anyway.
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Post by jandl100 on Feb 23, 2017 16:09:23 GMT
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Post by Chris on Mar 15, 2017 8:55:50 GMT
I really like how all our assumptions will be questioned as we discover more. Who's to say anyone would inhabit these planets at all? Maybe their technology allows better... These space posters are really cool,I like them. Be interesting to see if we make a huge change in propulsion systems in my lifetime - I'm 45 - and if those propulsion systems get put into public use. Be interesting to see what that X37B runs on and what it was up to.... I also enjoyed Passengers.... yesmovies.to/movie/passengers-18607.html |
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Post by MartinT on Apr 11, 2017 22:53:11 GMT
So what are NASA planning on announcing on Thursday? This could be very exciting. |
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Post by Chris on Apr 12, 2017 5:16:34 GMT
I'm wondering how long they've known before making an announcement. Och,who am I kidding - NASA knows the truth fine well and have done for years. Their photographic archive must be superb.....
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Post by Eduardo Wobblechops on Apr 12, 2017 9:32:42 GMT
What announcement Martin?
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Post by Eduardo Wobblechops on Apr 12, 2017 9:40:07 GMT
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Post by jandl100 on Apr 14, 2017 7:13:45 GMT
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Post by MartinT on Apr 14, 2017 8:53:47 GMT
Excellent! Some of these missions are starting to look like I won't live to see the results - shame.
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Post by Greg on Apr 14, 2017 9:28:22 GMT
Excellent! Some of these missions are starting to look like I won't live to see the results - shame. Yes, imagine how those actually working on such projects feel. |
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Post by MartinT on Apr 14, 2017 9:32:13 GMT
Agreed, they see them almost as their children.
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