Hubble sees 'planet' around star | BBC

[Ediacara]

Hubble sees 'planet' around star

By Dr David Whitehouse
BBC News Online science editor


The picture was taken with
Hubble's infrared Nicmos camera

The historic first image of a planet circling another star may have been taken by the Hubble Space Telescope.

The "planet", 5-10 times the mass of Jupiter, is orbiting a small white dwarf star about 100 light-years away.

Astronomers are being cautious, saying they require more data to be sure it really is a planet and not a background object caught in the same field of view.

Confirmation will come if follow-up observations can show the planet and the star moving together through space.

Over the past 10 years, scientists have discovered more than 120 so-called exoplanets. However, all have been found by indirect methods - none was photographed directly.

More at the BBC

[opihimoimoi]

1. God made Billions of planets to see which ones would spawn

species intelligent enough to acheive Peace and become interstellar and intergalatic. We have a slim hope but are stifled by the adherence to primitive Emotions.

We are a Species awaiting "rescue" by the ETs it seems for there is little hope of Humanity figuring things out independently. We appear lost in the land of Delusion. Way too much evidence supports this.

[qwertyMike]

9. "God made Billions of planets to see which ones would spawn

intelligent life"

I guess we're not the one.

[opihimoimoi]

10. We are too Intuitive, emotional to qualy for the next stage< Acheiving

Sustainability on this lifeboat called Earth>

[Bill McBlueState]

2. that's great!

I've always had this suspicion that the general public didn't really "get" the Doppler shift method of detecting planets.

If this really is a planet, that'll be a great image to work into planetarium shows, etc.

[Dudley_DUright]

6. Yes, the Marcy and Butler results were somewhat abstract

See the following link: http://astron.berkeley.edu/~gmarcy/sciam.html

This is much more visual in its appeal. This is a huge step forward. I hope this result gives NASA incentive to continue with the Terrestrial Planet Finder missions.

http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov/TPF/tpf_index.html

[moof]

11. Thank You Dudly DUright

A note to tell you how much your posts are enjoyed here at the moof hut.

It is always a treat to see your name on a post because more times than not it offers the chance to learn something new and interesting.

You are who comes to mind anytime someone says Rocket Scientist,
right after Carl Sagen of course, oops hope that doesn't insult you.

So for all you do here's to you !

[Dudley_DUright]

13. High praise indeed Moof

Carl Sagan is one of my heroes. However, I certainly do not deserve to be considered in the same league as dearly departed Carl. On the otherhand, I do like to share my specialize knowledge when possible. I rely on lots of others to do the same in there own areas of expertise, which is one of the things I really love about DU. :loveya:

[rabid_nerd]

3. Maybe this will save Hubble?

n/t

[nadinbrzezinski]

4. Ah more for my background info

thanks

[0rganism]

5. Yet, for some reason, Hubble must be allowed to fall into the ocean...

...so we can send some foolios to Mars?

[damnraddem]

7. Ooh, ...

don't you just wub Hubble?

[TrogL]

8. "may have been taken"

*sigh*

How about...

"The Hubble Space Telescope has taken a photograph that may turn out to be a historic first image of a planet circling another star".

[DrBB]

12. Nice coup for Hubble, but

...it really isn't adequate for this kind of thing. What we really need for this research is the "Very Large Array" telescope, using "Very Long Baseline Interferometry" to achieve fantastically small resolutions. Basically it forms a virtual telescope larger than the earth. Hubble's been great, but it's time to move on. Genuinely--not trash it in favor of a moon base. Course as an inveterate space junkie I'll take the moonbase too. Always felt cheated that we got to 2001 without one. Step one is to stop pouring billions upon billions down rat holes trying to establish a chimerical Pax Americana.

[Gman]

14. OMG! A square planet!

Its Bizarro world!

[ozone_man]

15. Actually, I think it's the Borg ship.

Good thing their still 100 light years away. But then they have warp travel don't they? :(

[Dudley_DUright]

16. Warp drive

and transdimensional gateways.

[MGKrebs]

17. The permutations emanating from the star are interesting too.

This is an infrared pic? Does infrared show magnetic fields? Or is that just "solar wind" type stuff?