Hubble harvests 100 new planets


Recommended Posts

hell could not visit the site from china.

  post pics here pls, or no kudos for hubble :cool:

here is the pics on that page

_40334643_hubble_203.jpg

_39727097_nasa_203long.jpg

but here is the text:

Hubble harvests 100 new planets

By Dr David Whitehouse

BBC News Online science editor

Hubble graphic, Hubble

Hubble monitored the so-called galactic bulge

The Hubble Space Telescope may have discovered as many as 100 new planets orbiting stars in our galaxy.

Hubble's harvest comes from a sweep of thousands of stars in the dome-like bulge of the Milky Way.

If confirmed it would almost double the number of planets known to be circling other stars to about 230.

The discovery will lend support to the idea that almost every sunlike star in our galaxy, and probably the Universe, is accompanied by planets.

'Most significant advance'

Steven Beckwith, director of the Space Telescope Science Institute, told BBC News Online: "I think this work has the potential to be the most significant advance in discovering extra-solar planetary systems since the first planets were discovered in the mid-1990s.

If this is confirmed, in seven days we will have doubled the number of planets known in nine years

Steven Beckwith, Space Telescope Science Institute

"If it works, it will be a breakthrough for the field, and it will make Hubble one of the most important instruments to find new planetary systems."

The planets were found during a seven-day observation period in February by astronomer Kailash Sahu.

Some of the stars observed were seen to dim slightly in brightness. It is thought that a planet passing in front of the star is responsible for the dip in its light-output.

"Discovery of many planets near stars in the bulge of the Galaxy would clearly demonstrate that planetary systems are very common around normal stars," Mr Beckwith said.

More work remains to be done to convince astronomers that they really have found so many new planets.

"We are not likely to have final results until this fall, perhaps September or October," Mr Beckwith added.

"We need to confirm some of the candidate planets discovered around the brighter stars by using well know radial velocity techniques from the ground, a process that will take a few weeks. There is further analysis of the Hubble images to do as well."

The astronomers expect it should be possible to study the atmospheres of between 10% and 20% of the planets discovered.

The US space agency Nasa is studying options to refurbish the Hubble telescope using unmanned spacecraft following a decision earlier this year that, in the wake of the Columbia disaster, it was too dangerous to send astronauts to it on the Space Shuttle.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And they want to let this thing die?! Geez.

;) It is to be replaced, not die.

"Hubble's replacement, the James Webb Space Telescope, will not be launched until around 2011 at the earliest."

How many UFO's has Hubble sited ? :unsure:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And here i thought NASA was just a money scam using technology from the early 60's/70's to make money

well i guess they arent so USELESS after all...all i can say is USE THE DAMN METRIC SYSTEM!!!....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Finally, a little bit of progress in the space department. :rolleyes:

not to mention that the Cassiny probe has successfully enteres SATURN's orbit. (that was sometime around the day b4 yesterday)

and on christmas it's gonna release a subprobe to land on one of it's moons (forgot the name)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yay :sleep:

Now, all the great nations on the planet will spent billion of dollars to investigate and maybe even go to these planets.

Meanwhile, people are starving on the street, and lots of people are dieing every day because of security failed to be maintained properly. And lots of other reasons. Why ? They can't afford it but whiii uhhh we can afford going to other planets to collect ash and rocks :woot: and maybe even jump around YIRR ...

Well, thats just my perspective. Some of you might not agree and thats fine ... Leave it at that

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Now, all the great nations on the planet will spent billion of dollars to investigate and maybe even go to these planets.

Meanwhile, people are starving on the street ...

:laugh:: If you'd eat fewer donuts, more would be not starving.

j/k

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.