Water found in Extra-Solar Planet.

[robnissen]

Very cool:<br /><br />http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/070410_water_exoplanet.html<br /><br />It is amazing that in less than 15 years we have gone from 0 Extra-Solar planets to finding water on one.

 

[logicize]

Even more amazing, right here at home. We've gone from nine planets to ??? planets and were not even sure what to call some of the planets we've always called planets. It's also amazing that we can detect water on a planet outside of our solar system, but we've driven on and orbited Mars for a much longer time and just now came to realize that there is liquid water there.

 

[robnissen]

<font color="yellow"> just now came to realize that there is liquid water [on Mars]</font><br /><br />Uh. Not yet. There is no definitive proof of liquid water, although the changing gullies are certainly interesting.

 

[logicize]

Then how can we be certain of water on a planet in another solar system?<br /><br />I think you may have missed the point.<br /><br />http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/12/061206-mars-water.html

 

[robnissen]

I think the absorbtion lines are stronger evidence of water (not liquid) on the extrasolar planet than are the changing gullies on Mars. But don't get me wrong, I certainly hope there is current liquid water on Mars and I think we are getting close to definitive proof.

 

[jmilsom]

Thanks RobNissen for drawing our attention to that article and thanks Borman for the link to the SIMPlanetQuest article. That is very exciting!!!!!<br /><br />To quote from the article:<br /><br /><i>"SIM could detect Earth-mass planets orbiting at mid-habitable zone around every one of the most favorable ~64 stars in the solar neighborhood."</i><br /><br /><i>"It could launch as soon as 2015. Humanity could discover its first one Earth mass planet in the HZ less than a decade from now!"</i><br /><br />Fantastic, I hope this mission proceeds. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[weeman]

Thanks for the article Rob <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> <br /><br />Did anyone click on the article at the bottom titled "30 billion Earths?" ? That is interesting too. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000">Techies: We do it in the dark. </font></strong></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>"Put your hand on a stove for a minute and it seems like an hour. Sit with that special girl for an hour and it seems like a minute. That's relativity.</strong><strong>" -Albert Einstein </strong></font></p> </div>

 

[JonClarke]

<i>I think the absorbtion lines are stronger evidence of water (not liquid) on the extrasolar planet than are the changing gullies on Mars.</i><br /><br />Obviously you are not a geomorphologist. <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Whether we become a multi-planet species with unlimited horizons, or are forever confined to Earth will be decided in the twenty-first century amid the vast plains, rugged canyons and lofty mountains of Mars</em>  Arthur Clarke</p> </div>

 

[jmilsom]

Yes that 30 billion earths? article is a nice one too. I like the quote:<br /><br /><i>"Our solar system is Jupiter and a bunch of junk"</i> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[enigma10]

<i><font color="yellow">geomorphologist.</font></i><br /><br /> Every time i see that word i think of some geologist that can morph into different rocks or something. <img src="/images/icons/tongue.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <em>"<font color="#333399">An organism at war with itself is a doomed organism." - Carl Sagan</font></em> </div>

 

[qso1]

logicize:<br />Then how can we be certain of water on a planet in another solar system?<br /><br />Me:<br />Another thing to consider is that the planet that may have water probably has a much thicker atmosphere than Mars which could mean water in liquid form but almost certainly a much higher concentration of water vapor in the atmosphere. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>

 

[logicize]

It seem to me that we certainly don't know enough about extra-solar planets to say that water 'has been found' on one. I would probably be more comfortable with 'may have been found'. There are enough things that we once knew to be true about our own solar system that have been turned out not to be true. Really, you don't 'know' anything until you can actually go there. Everything else is just an educated guess and could turn out to be completely wrong.

 

[MeteorWayne]

That's always the starting point of my meteor talk!<br />Which I'm tuning up for tomorrows lecture. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>

 

[JonClarke]

That would be the metamorphic petrologists! <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> Slippery customers, let me tell you! <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Whether we become a multi-planet species with unlimited horizons, or are forever confined to Earth will be decided in the twenty-first century amid the vast plains, rugged canyons and lofty mountains of Mars</em>  Arthur Clarke</p> </div>

 

[qso1]

logicize:<br />It seem to me that we certainly don't know enough about extra-solar planets to say that water 'has been found' on one.<br /><br />Me:<br />I agree with this and I think whats probably going to happen is that in future years there will be missteps. Its not all that uncommon. But in looking at the article, some things to keep in mind. It was written by a reporter and reporters or magazine article writers tend to spice up their stories to get them published. The headline reads "Water Found in Extrasolar Planet's Atmosphere" which is just as you mentioned. But when reading the article, you'll notice water vapor is mentioned rather than water. Big difference as it should be easier to detect water vapor than liquid water.<br /><br />In the article excerpt below:<br /><br />The discovery, announced today, means one of the most crucial elements for life as we know it can exist around planets orbiting other stars.<br /><br />Me:<br />Note they say can exist as opposed to does exist. Then go on to see how they detected water vapor and you can see how it would be possible in a planet with a sufficiently thick atmosphere. Mars essentially has so little atmosphere that even water vapor would be nearly impossible to detect. But with mars, the evidence for water lies more in what can be seen on the surface. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>