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NASA confirms 'super-Earth' that could hold life

Xracer

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WASHINGTON: In another step toward finding Earth-like planets that may hold life, NASA said Monday the Kepler space telescope has confirmed its first-ever planet in a habitable zone outside our solar system.

French astronomers earlier this year confirmed the first rocky exoplanet to meet key requirements for sustaining life. But Kepler-22b, initially glimpsed in 2009, is the first the US space agency has been able to confirm.

Confirmation means that astronomers have seen it crossing in front of its star three times. But it doesn't mean that astronomers know whether life actually exists there, simply that the conditions are right.

Such planets have the right distance from their star to support water, plus a suitable temperature and atmosphere to support life.

"We have now got good planet confirmation with Kepler-22b," said Bill Borucki, Kepler principal investigator at NASA Ames Research Center.

"We are certain that it is in the habitable zone and if it has a surface, it ought to have a nice temperature," he told reporters.

Spinning around its star some 600 light years away, Kepler-22b is 2.4 times the size of the Earth, putting it in class known as "super-Earths," and orbits its Sun-like star every 290 days.

Its near-surface temperature is presumed to be about 72 degrees Fahrenheit (22 Celsius). Scientists do not know, however, whether the planet is rocky, gaseous or liquid.

The planet's first "transit," or star crossover, was captured shortly after NASA launched its Kepler spacecraft in March 2009.

NASA also announced that Kepler has uncovered 1,094 more potential planets, twice the number it previously had been tracking, according to research being presented at a conference in California this week.

Kepler is NASA's first mission in search of Earth-like planets orbiting suns similar to ours, and cost the US space agency about $600 million.

It is equipped with the largest camera ever sent into space -- a 95-megapixel array of charge-coupled devices -- and is expected to continue sending information back to Earth until at least November 2012.

Kepler is searching for planets as small as Earth, including those orbiting stars in a warm, habitable zone where liquid water could exist on the surface of the planet.

The latest confirmed exoplanet that could support life brings to three the total number confirmed by global astronomers.

In addition to French astronomers' confirmed finding of Gliese 581d in May, Swiss astronomers reported in August that another planet, HD 85512 b, about 36 light years away seemed to be in the habitable zone of its star.

However, those two planets are "orbiting stars smaller and cooler than our Sun," NASA said in a statement, noting that Kepler-22b "is the smallest yet found to orbit in the middle of the habitable zone of a star similar to our Sun."

"The Europeans have also been very active, actively working on confirming our candidates," said Natalie Batalha, Kepler deputy science team lead at San Jose State University.

"They have already confirmed two that are published and they have got another batch that are on the preprint servers so those will be, I'm sure, in the published literature soon," she added.

"So we are just thrilled about this. We need all telescopes observing these candidates so we can confirm as many as possible."

A total of 48 exoplanets and exomoons are potential habitable candidates, among a total of 2,326 possibilities that Kepler has identified so far.
 
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Muslims know that already. Infact other than earth, there would be 6 more.

[Quran 65.12] Allah is the one who created seven Heavens and from Earth like them (of corresponding type); [Allah’s] command descends among them so that you may know that Allah is capable of anything and that Allah knows everything.

Reference URL: Surat At-Talaq [65:12] - The Holy Qur'an - ?????? ??????
 
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Muslims know that already. Infact other than earth, there would be 6 more.

[Quran 65.12] Allah is the one who created seven Heavens and from Earth like them (of corresponding type); [Allah’s] command descends among them so that you may know that Allah is capable of anything and that Allah knows everything.

Reference URL: Surat At-Talaq [65:12] - The Holy Qur'an - ?????? ??????

ohh please keep religion out of this.
 
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But if they are 36 or 600 light years away then they are useless for us, we cannot reach there any soon.
 
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Muslims know that already. Infact other than earth, there would be 6 more.

[Quran 65.12] Allah is the one who created seven Heavens and from Earth like them (of corresponding type); [Allah’s] command descends among them so that you may know that Allah is capable of anything and that Allah knows everything.

Reference URL: Surat At-Talaq [65:12] - The Holy Qur'an - ?????? ??????


Nothing new. Hence most of the religious copy paste each other fables No wonder Quran say the same

Srimad Bhagavatam 3.5.8: The Supreme King of all kings has created different planets and places of habitation where living entities are situated in terms of the modes of nature and work, and He has created their different kings and rulers.

Best example is story of great flood. It has been copied from Sumerian script and all major religion great men have ctrl-V it in their religious book. :)



What was the *****of the ****** which **** used?

refrain from such comments, you may get ban...

But if they are 36 or 600 light years away then they are useless for us, we cannot reach there any soon.

For now, yes. But for next 50 years, can't say. May be we know the method of worm-hole ad warp speed...
 
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Well if we want to get their we have to think beyond our fossil fuel burning rockets and space ships

retro_space_rocket_photosculpture-p153449174095546538z71l7_400.jpg


Lindberg_SpaceShip2.jpg
 
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I read this news yesterday and I was excited as hell for the entire day. Man we could just escape this planet that we F**ed up ourselves and start a new life there. ALAS however nations will have wars for it that is for sure.

All in all we will never get there unless we settle all our differences or the entire bulk of the research money used will go to creating weapons of death instead of an aircraft that can take us which will be a weapon of life.
 
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