Listen to this PodcastMore 60-Second Space
They say there's no place like home. Well, we may get to test the idea. Because astronomers have located a world that could be a bit like Earth some 36 light-years away. The new addition to the list of exoplanets goes by the name HD 85512 b. And the newfound world is among the few known that might be hospitable to life.
The exoplanet is a few times the mass of Earth, but it should still be small enough to be rocky rather than a gas giant like Jupiter. It orbits close to its star, but since that star is somewhat smaller and cooler than the sun, the planet's climate could be rather temperate. That's according to a new study submitted to the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. [Lisa Kaltenegger et al. on arXiv.org, "A Habitable Planet around HD 85512?"]
If the planet has an atmosphere like ours, it would need about 50 percent cloud cover to stay cool enough for liquid water to exist on the surface. Mild enough, that is, for life as we know it.
Astronomers are just beginning to find potentially habitable worlds. And NASA's Kepler satellite should turn up more soon—including, perhaps, some that look even more like Earth.
—John Matson
[The above text is a transcript of this podcast.]
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28 Comments
Add CommentExciting times! My bet is one year at the outside for us to confirm, within accepted scientific uncertainty, the existence of a habitable exoplanet.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWhat we really need is a planet that's more Earth-like than Earth, or what's left of it...
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI am available for space travel.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI agree, and we also need NASA to build a ship that will get us there before we turn to dust. It can't be that hard to build a ship, in 0 gravity, that can warp space and get us there faster than light. "jtdwyer", I know what you are going to say, so don't say it. Just remember that it was a 13 year-old boy who figured out how to increase solar output by 50%: http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-08/13-year-old-designs-breakthrough-solar-array-based-fibonacci-sequence
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisseveral times the size of Earth! would that gravity make lifeforms there bigger or smaller than here?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI am available for space travel.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIf Mankind could engineer a craft capable of even c/10, is reasonable to expect a collision avoidance system capable of safe travel at such speed? Even a small object would cause catastrophic failure.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisLogic would dictate a Star Trek style "Transporter". A far more practical idea for at least few BILLION years would be population control coupled with proper husbandry of the most perfect world we presently know fairly well. Oh sure, not as expensive or exciting, but infinitely more possible. Here. Now.
Seriously, could there be a planet more beautiful and perfect for our needs than THIS one?
In a nutshell, how much would a 200-lb. human weigh on planet HD 85512 b? In other words, if it's several times the size of Earth, does that translate to mass, and does that mass increase gravity?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisHere's the really creepy question:
If HD 85512 b has gravity that would make a 200-lb man weigh half a ton, then is it possible creatures are roaming the planet "in miniature"? Could intelligent humanoid creatures walk the planet that are lilliputian in size compared to humans on Earth? If so that would mean civilization could cover a land mass equivalent to a dozen or more Earth-sized planets relative to the size of humanoid inhabitants, and the size of their structures, cities, farmlands, and so forth.
As a wild add-on thought to my last remark, if anyone recalls the 1960's sci-fi fantasy series "Land of the Giants," in the scenario I painted, Earth would be the "land of the giants," and the cast of that series whose suborbital space flight entered an Einstein-Rosen Bridge would be the humanlike lilliputian inhabitants of planet HD 85512 b that entered Earth space and crashed on our planet. It would change the whole way one would view that television series!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisY'all act as if the main obstacle were making ships fast. Surviving the trip would seem to be the first step. I'm talking about shielding and contrary to popular belief no one really has any idea how to properly shield astronauts outside of earth's immediate environs (Yes that includes the moon). Look it up you'll find it surprising.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisForgive my ignorance but wouldn't higher gravity constitute larger and stronger lifeforms to support the extra weight of the gravity level? Also, given the seemingly unpredictable nature of evolution and natural selection, I would say the chances are extremely low that whatever life that may exist out there is "humanoid" in structure, intelligent or not.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisCan't wait for the breakthrough on this exo-planet research! Go Kepler! :)
Who needs linear space travel, E-boy. Just hop through the nearest stargate.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisQuote: "Astronomers are just beginning to find potentially habitable worlds."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisActually, no. None have been found. With 10 to the 23rd power of stars in the universe there are probably quintillions and quintillions of earth-like planets but none have yet been found that we would consider habitable by humans or human-like beings. Yes, a few so far might be 'hospitable to life' but that wouldn't be life as found on earth. The gravity would be ...'UGH'.
We need more than a rocky planet that has water, an O2 level~ 21%, and a mass nearly that of earth. It also needs to have a core that generates a magnetic field that will deflect harmful cosmic and solar radiation. Still a long way to go in home away from home planet selection.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIts an example of hope and change we can all strive for to think that it might be practicable someplace after 2013 to cand send Obama and his lunatic superstious acolytes who fear Moon travel. Send up more telescopes, please!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThere are so many factors to consider before I could imagine what any life would be like on another exoplanet, in the "habitable zone". Not just intelligent life.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI just wish I picked the career that would qualify me to be part of this project!
Unfortunately, our perfect, beautiful planet has not always been so. In the past 600,000 years, it is theorized that it has been covered with 10-miles of ice, bombarded by several large meteors that almost wiped out life, and experienced massive volcanic events that filled the atmosphere with noxious, choking gases for thousands of years. And it will happen again.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisHi, Eyes -- Imaginaative concept. However, doesn't that depend on the density or mass of bodily construction materials? For one thing, this story did not provide results of spectrometer studies and so, although scientists might already know what gases are present on HD85512b, you and I don't know (yet), unless you've done other reading on this. So, maybe creatures there breathe a hot combo of methane, chlorine, and carbon dioxide. Secondly, even here on earth, depending on location (under sea, on mountain tops, deserts) our life forms amino acids (if you consider them to be life), to squid, jelly fish, bioluminescent fish, rhinos, birds, elephants and dolphins, and other amazing creatures, none of which look anything like man. If you've been reading SA, then you know that scientists have discovered some communications systems that allow Earth animals to communicate with each other about things necessary to them . . . whales (long distance), dolphins, elephants (ultra low frequency) So, even if we arrived there, we'd have to bring along sonar devices (to talk to intelligent bats?) or infrared devices, and ultraviolet systems (their animals might have different types of "vision") and learn their culture, so we could communicate with them and they'd have half an idea what we were trying to say. Maybe they've mastered the art of just "knowing" without words, or intuiting the thoughts of another.... and maybe they're compassionate nonaggressive souls to be "conquered." Then again, maybe they would vaporize us upon landing. And hopefully we would not catch any diseases from them (or vice versa). You know, I don't think this concept of space travel sounds too promising -- even if we figured out how to reach one of the planets within a reasonable timeframe.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisHi, Eyes -- Imaginaative concept. However, doesn't that depend on the density or mass of bodily construction materials? For one thing, this story did not provide results of spectrometer studies and so, although scientists might already know what gases are present on HD85512b, you and I don't know (yet), unless you've done other reading on this. So, maybe creatures there breathe a hot combo of methane, chlorine, and carbon dioxide. Secondly, even here on earth, depending on location (under sea, on mountain tops, deserts) our life forms amino acids (if you consider them to be life), to squid, jelly fish, bioluminescent fish, rhinos, birds, elephants and dolphins, and other amazing creatures, none of which look anything like man. If you've been reading SA, then you know that scientists have discovered some communications systems that allow Earth animals to communicate with each other about things necessary to them . . . whales (long distance), dolphins, elephants (ultra low frequency) So, even if we arrived there, we'd have to bring along sonar devices (to talk to intelligent bats?) or infrared devices, and ultraviolet systems (their animals might have different types of "vision") and learn their culture, so we could communicate with them and they'd have half an idea what we were trying to say. Maybe they've mastered the art of just "knowing" without words, or intuiting the thoughts of another.... and maybe they're compassionate nonaggressive souls to be "conquered." Then again, maybe they would vaporize us upon landing. And hopefully we would not catch any diseases from them (or vice versa). You know, I don't think this concept of space travel sounds too promising -- even if we figured out how to reach one of the planets within a reasonable timeframe.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisHi, Eyes -- Imaginaative concept. However, doesn't that depend on the density or mass of bodily construction materials? For one thing, this story did not provide results of spectrometer studies and so, although scientists might already know what gases are present on HD85512b, you and I don't know (yet), unless you've done other reading on this. So, maybe creatures there breathe a hot combo of methane, chlorine, and carbon dioxide. Secondly, even here on earth, depending on location (under sea, on mountain tops, deserts) our life forms amino acids (if you consider them to be life), to squid, jelly fish, bioluminescent fish, rhinos, birds, elephants and dolphins, and other amazing creatures, none of which look anything like man. If you've been reading SA, then you know that scientists have discovered some communications systems that allow Earth animals to communicate with each other about things necessary to them . . . whales (long distance), dolphins, elephants (ultra low frequency) So, even if we arrived there, we'd have to bring along sonar devices (to talk to intelligent bats?) or infrared devices, and ultraviolet systems (their animals might have different types of "vision") and learn their culture, so we could communicate with them and they'd have half an idea what we were trying to say. Maybe they've mastered the art of just "knowing" without words, or intuiting the thoughts of another.... and maybe they're compassionate nonaggressive souls to be "conquered." Then again, maybe they would vaporize us upon landing. And hopefully we would not catch any diseases from them (or vice versa). You know, I don't think this concept of space travel sounds too promising -- even if we figured out how to reach one of the planets within a reasonable timeframe.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisHi, Eyes -- Imaginaative concept. However, doesn't that depend on the density or mass of bodily construction materials? For one thing, this story did not provide results of spectrometer studies and so, although scientists might already know what gases are present on HD85512b, you and I don't know (yet), unless you've done other reading on this. So, maybe creatures there breathe a hot combo of methane, chlorine, and carbon dioxide. Secondly, even here on earth, depending on location (under sea, on mountain tops, deserts) our life forms amino acids (if you consider them to be life), to squid, jelly fish, bioluminescent fish, rhinos, birds, elephants and dolphins, and other amazing creatures, none of which look anything like man. If you've been reading SA, then you know that scientists have discovered some communications systems that allow Earth animals to communicate with each other about things necessary to them . . . whales (long distance), dolphins, elephants (ultra low frequency) So, even if we arrived there, we'd have to bring along sonar devices (to talk to intelligent bats?) or infrared devices, and ultraviolet systems (their animals might have different types of "vision") and learn their culture, so we could communicate with them and they'd have half an idea what we were trying to say. Maybe they've mastered the art of just "knowing" without words, or intuiting the thoughts of another.... and maybe they're compassionate nonaggressive souls to be "conquered." Then again, maybe they would vaporize us upon landing. And hopefully we would not catch any diseases from them (or vice versa). You know, I don't think this concept of space travel sounds too promising -- even if we figured out how to reach one of the planets within a reasonable timeframe.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisi, Eyes -- Imaginative concept. However, doesn't that depend on the density or mass of bodily construction materials? For one thing, this story did not provide results of spectrometer studies and so, although scientists might already know what gases are present on HD85512b, you and I don't know (yet), unless you've done other reading on this. So, maybe creatures there breathe a hot combo of methane, chlorine, and carbon dioxide. Secondly, even here on earth, depending on location (under sea, on mountain tops, deserts) our life forms amino acids (if you consider them to be life), to squid, jelly fish, bioluminescent fish, rhinos, birds, elephants and dolphins, and other amazing creatures, none of which look anything like man. If you've been reading SA, then you know that scientists have discovered some communications systems that allow Earth animals to communicate with each other about things necessary to them . . . whales (long distance), dolphins, elephants (ultra low frequency) So, even if we arrived there, we'd have to bring along sonar devices (to talk to intelligent bats?) or infrared devices, and ultraviolet systems (their animals might have different types of "vision") and learn their culture, so we could communicate with them and they'd have half an idea what we were trying to say. Maybe they've mastered the art of just "knowing" without words, or intuiting the thoughts of another.... and maybe they're compassionate nonaggressive souls to be "conquered." Then again, maybe they would vaporize us upon landing. And hopefully we would not catch any diseases from them (or vice versa). You know, I don't think this concept of space travel sounds too promising -- even if we figured out how to reach one of the planets within a reasonable timeframe.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisPlease, Webmaster, remove my extra comments. I had a computer malfunction and thought this had not been sent, so pressed the "send" button several times, only to discover -- much later -- that the transmissions did go through. Remove this one, also, please.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this@Malibanne, I would have to think about the first part of your comment, but do agree life is not limited by gravitational forces, atmospheric pressures, or any number of other factors inhospitable to life on Earth. There's "fragile" looking life at crushing depths in the deepest ocean basins that requires that pressure to survive, even though it could crush all but the strongest submersible. I also believe life on other worlds may be bizarre. Immune systems in life of our world and other worlds are likely incompatible. However, in the infinite probabilities of infinite space-time it is also likely there are other human civilizations as well.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisAs for linear space travel, the theoretical Einstein-Rosen Bridge, wormhole, and methods yet to be conceived by present or future geniuses that would confound Einstein himself are also an increasing probability. At least, that is, if the laws of physics are fractal in nature and infinitely complex, which is counter-intuitive to physicists who dream of a theory of everything. Perhaps this universe is some form of organic "software" similar to the world of The Matrix. I've even pondered sometimes that everything is getting so strange because the collective minds and consciousness of intelligent life in this universe is "creating" infinite branches of multiverses, many of which exist in a form of "imaginary time" for lack of a better phrase. Nobody who wants to retain their credibility in the scientific community likes going down this path because it's existential and philosophical, subject to ridicule and scorn.
The idea of "miniature" civilizations holds a certain fascination for me, because I wonder if NASA and our government would respect an advanced planetary civilization so tiny it looked like one of those elaborate train sets enthusiasts build in large basements, with all the little trees, buildings and roads... would we treat such a world as sacred and turn it into a sanctuary, like we protect marine sanctuaries or wildlife preservers? It's a troubling question.
With a surface gravity of 1.4G an animal with physiology similar to animals we find on Earth would require larger and stronger structures to support greater mass - however a larger planet might engender a substantially more dense atmosphere which might provide a small buoyancy effect and would allow a larger animal to dissipate heat more quickly.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIt does provide for wild speculation as well, imagine a planet of this mass with 10 earth atmospheres of pressure at sea level and a high concentration of oxygen - they could have extremely large creatures with insect like physiology. Then again, maybe it has a moon at 3/4 the size of the Earth and its moon has life but the planet does not. Also, it could be a water world with very little habitable land mass and massive ocean creatures. Also a planet of this magnitude will likely have much more geological activity than an earth sized planet, what kinds of life might be more prevalent in such a world? But fanciful speculation aside, perhaps some future telescope will be able to give us additional details.
This is a good point, either you would need a large quantity of mass, in the form of something like lead, between you and space radiation, which runs cross purpose to propulsion, or some sort of magnetic shielding such as the Van Allen belts provide, which would take a lot of energy supposing we even knew how to generate an effective shield.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisYour reference to the planet having a habitable moon calls to mind the excellent sci-fi movie Pitch Black, the prequel to Chronicles of Riddick. A fascinating concept.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thiseddarcourt: It depends on where the organism grows up!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thiswITH GENES TO GROW IN HIGH GRAVITY, THEY'D PROBABLY GROW LARGER IN LOW GRAVITY!