Beta Pictoris Extrasolar Planet

[Khas 12,158]

http://www.eso.org/public/events/announcements/ann1037/index.html

 

 

 

This is actually pretty exciting, because people speculated that Beta Pictoris had a young system of planets around it even before the first extrasolar planets were discovered. Now, we not only know that it has at least one, but we have a (fuzzy) picture of it!

[Tyralak 12,068]

That's pretty cool. I wonder if confirmation of life in another star system would spur research into FTL.

[Khas 12,158]

It might. However, it wouldn't be around Beta Pictoris. That star's dust cloud hasn't even gone away yet. Three stars I can name off the top of my head that have planets that COULD support life are:

 

 

 

Gliese 876 (15 light-years away)

 

Mu Arae (50 light-years away)

 

Upsilon Andromedae (I forget the distance)

[Tyralak 12,068]

It might. However, it wouldn't be around Beta Pictoris. That star's dust cloud hasn't even gone away yet. Three stars I can name off the top of my head that have planets that COULD support life are:

 

 

 

Gliese 876 (15 light-years away)

 

Mu Arae (50 light-years away)

 

Upsilon Andromedae (I forget the distance)

 

 

 

44 light years, IIRC.

[Khas 12,158]

Ah. Thanks for the distance info.

[Tyralak 12,068]

Ah. Thanks for the distance info.

 

 

 

Without good FTL, it's still way too far. Of course, anything is without FTL. That's going to be the big sticking point. We could find an alien planet teeming with life, full of shopping malls and vapid teenagers, and we couldn't do a damn thing about it.

[Praeothmin 532]

Without good FTL, it's still way too far. Of course, anything is without FTL. That's going to be the big sticking point. We could find an alien planet teeming with life, full of shopping malls and vapid teenagers, and we couldn't do a damn thing about it.

 

 

 

We could send them full episodes of 90210 to let them know we are as evolved as they are...