Distant Planet Spotted Around the Bend (17,000 ly) | LA Times

[Ediacara]

Distant Planet Spotted Around the Bend
A new technique using distorted light waves should help astronomers identify Earth-sized bodies.

By Thomas H. Maugh II, Times Staff Writer

Astronomers have for the first time used the bending of light waves from a star to identify a planet 17,000 light-years away, an achievement that could set the stage for the discovery of more extrasolar planets, especially smaller planets similar in size to Earth.

Researchers have so far identified more than 100 extrasolar planets by observing slight wobbles in a star's trajectory caused by a planet circling it or by observing small changes in a star's brightness when a planet passes in front of it.

But those methods work only for planets larger than Jupiter, and most of the planets discovered so far orbit very close to their stars — indicating that the planetary systems are not very much like our own.

More at the Los Angeles Times

[DavidDvorkin]

1. Wow!

I can't wait for the discovery of an Earth-sized planet.

Followed of course by analysis of its atmosphere indicating the presence of intelligent life.

[kysrsoze]

2. We're moving quickly in that direction. Check this out.....

Evidently NASA is working on a more sophisticated scope system than the infra-red one coming in 2010. By 2020, they plan to have deep-space network of 4 linked telescopes that will be able to detect near earth-sized planets in color view (complete with spectroscopic analysis) and somehow be able to filter out the light of the star it orbits. That's pretty cool.

[goclark]

3. Can we send Bush to do a closer look for us? n/t

[Tims]

6. Don't Count on It

They can't (won't) provide even minimal funding just to keep Hubble aloft, one of greatest scientific achievements NASA has provided to the field of astronomy. Why would you think that there would be any real money given to support more ambitious, expensive and unproven projects? These things will remain in the perpetual planning stage while more and more money will be thrown down the drain on the pie in the sky manned Mars mission development and the totally superfluous space station.

To our government, space is simply bread a circuses. If it doesn't impress the common voter and make us feel smug and technologically superior to other nations, it has no value. Science be damned.

[daleo]

4. I wonder what the religious zealots would make of that

I don't think the Bible or other holy books preclude the possibility. There has been speculation about the theological implications of other worlds since at least the 16th century.

But I don't know if today's zealots (of all stripes) could handle the idea that the entire universe didn't revolve around this earth, and especially a few thousand square miles in the middle east.

[belle]

5. Probably just call them demonic and focus all their energies on

wiping them out.