the kepler space observatory is on its way...

[Mike70]

launched last night, it is one of the cooler things to come along in space research in a long, long time. it has the capability to scan the habitable zone (where water can exist as a liquid) of 100,000 stars simultaneously and look for terrestrial size planets. kepler will find planets by looking for transits. as a planet crosses in front of its star it causes the light from the star to dim slightly. the amount of dimness can be used to gauge the planet's mass, temperature and orbital period. kepler is able to detect planets that have up to 600 times less mass than jupiter and has a range of 3,000 light years. for comparison, jupiter is 318 times more massive than the earth. there is a 1 in 215 chance of finding a planet the size of earth in a star's habitable zone. not bad odds when you are looking at 100,000 stars at once. http://www.spaceflightnow.com/delta/d339/

[krakenslayer]

Ooooh! Exciting stuff! Thanks for posting this, Mike. Sort of on topic - I was thinking today, what would be scarier; knowing there is other (possibly infinitely superior) sentient life out there, possibly watching us, or knowing we are completely and absolutely alone in the universe? Personally, I think the inexpressible loneliness of a vast, lifeless universe is a far more terrifying concept than the idea of death by extraterrestrial laser beam. Here's hoping we find something...

[strayrider]

This is one of those things that I do not mind my tax dollars being spent on, even if they find only ONE planet in the habitable zone. -stray-

[MaximusIncredulous]

Personally, I think the inexpressible loneliness of a vast, lifeless universe is a far more terrifying concept than the idea of death by extraterrestrial laser beam. TBH, I'm more worried about some big dumb rock doing us in.

[Mike70]

Ooooh! Exciting stuff! Thanks for posting this, Mike. Sort of on topic - I was thinking today, what would be scarier; knowing there is other (possibly infinitely superior) sentient life out there, possibly watching us, or knowing we are completely and absolutely alone in the universe? Personally, I think the inexpressible loneliness of a vast, lifeless universe is a far more terrifying concept than the idea of death by extraterrestrial laser beam. Here's hoping we find something... i think that life is probably relatively common. however, i think that intelligent life is probably very rare. the reason i think life (on any level) is common is due to the relatively mundane nature of life on earth. life here is based on some of the most common elements in the universe -hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, calcium, iron, sodium, etc. everywhere we look in the universe we find these elements in large abundance. if life here was based instead on, say titanium, uranium, osmium, and gallium, then it might give pause for thought.

[krakenslayer]

i think that life is probably relatively common. however, i think that intelligent life is probably very rare. the reason i think life (on any level) is common is due to the relatively mundane nature of life on earth. life here is based on some of the most common elements in the universe -hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, calcium, iron, sodium, etc. everywhere we look in the universe we find these elements in large abundance. if life here was based instead on, say titanium, uranium, osmium, and gallium, then it might give pause for thought. But it's not so much a matter of how common the elements are (as you say, they are very common), but how likely they are to come together in the correct configuration, under the correct conditions, to give rise to life. No one can really put a number on it, but estimates on the odds range from astronomical to infinite. If the odds are merely astronomical, then given the vast gulfs of time between now and the big bang, there's a decent chance to find life nearby. However, the great age of the universe poses another problem - what if life is relatively common in the universe, and has been born and died out millions of times on millions of worlds, BUT Earth is the only place where there's life right now? :S

[Danny]

man, could you imagine the news flashes if it found something else, like a drifting spaceship or something?, im going into ray bradbury theatre stuff right now, but if there is or has been life near us i can see us trying to rework any abandoned stuff for our own uses. thus continuing the idea that in 10,000 years we will be the tyranids of the universe.

[Mike70]

But it's not so much a matter of how common the elements are (as you say, they are very common), but how likely they are to come together in the correct configuration, under the correct conditions, to give rise to life. No one can really put a number on it, but estimates on the odds range from astronomical to infinite. good points, my last post was a bit too simplified. in addition to the right conditions for organic chemistry to occur there would be other things that would help life along or keep it from getting wiped out: i 'd say the planet would have to have a magnetic field to shield it from radiation and to keep the solar wind from ionizing the hell out of the atmosphere. a planet the size of jupiter in a position similar to the one jupiter is in would be a plus. jupiter acts a sort of guardian of the inner solar system. its immense gravity deflects most of the crap from the outer solar system away from the inner planets. i also think that active volcanoes would be a must. how else would the carbon dioxide cycle get driven along. without the volcanoes on earth, the carbon dioxide would get scrubbed out of the atmosphere (mostly by the oceans), no carbon dioxide means no plant life, no plant life means no oxygen. granted there are other gasses that can drive combustion and there might be life forms that are able to break down things like carbon monoxide into oxygen (a two cycle respiration system basically) but oxygen is still the best choice chemically because of its psychotically reactive properties. i would also submit that spectral type G stars like the sun are the best places to look. long lifespans and stability. red dwarfs, the most common type of star in the universe, have some serious disadvantages. they emit most of their light in the infrared instead of visible light. their low temperature means that a planet close enough to be habitable would most likely be tidal locked to the star - one side would be in perpetual daylight, the other in perpetual night. last and certainly not least, lots of red dwarfs are flare stars, meaning their brightness can double with little warning in minutes.

[mista_mo]

thus continuing the idea that in 10,000 years we will be the tyranids of the universe. The Hive mind beckons to thee