Lost in space
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http://www.universetoday.com/am/publish/large_rocky_planet.html?1362005
We've finally found a extrasolar terrestrial planet, just when people thought all we were going to keep finding were more "hot Jupiters."
This bugger is 7.5x Earth's mass, twice the diameter, and has a two day long year.
It's good that we're finding more and more planets. It's pretty interesting that 20 years ago, the only planets we knew existed were the ones in our own Solar System. Now we know of over 100.
Before anyone gets a fire in their pants, it's pretty much ruled out that life as we know it could exist on this planet, as the temperatures are way too high. It's pretty close to its star - 1/50 the distance that we are from Sol. That explains its short orbital period, too. The more planets like this we discover, though, the better the chances we have of finding out whether or not we truly are alone in the Universe.
We've finally found a extrasolar terrestrial planet, just when people thought all we were going to keep finding were more "hot Jupiters."
This bugger is 7.5x Earth's mass, twice the diameter, and has a two day long year.
It's good that we're finding more and more planets. It's pretty interesting that 20 years ago, the only planets we knew existed were the ones in our own Solar System. Now we know of over 100.
Before anyone gets a fire in their pants, it's pretty much ruled out that life as we know it could exist on this planet, as the temperatures are way too high. It's pretty close to its star - 1/50 the distance that we are from Sol. That explains its short orbital period, too. The more planets like this we discover, though, the better the chances we have of finding out whether or not we truly are alone in the Universe.