Posted on 04/30/2009 2:34:34 PM PDT by LibWhacker
Intelligent life surely exists on some of the planets beyond our solar system. But we’ve scarcely begun to look for it. With NASA dithering and corporate titans more interested in space tourism, a serious exploration of the stars is limited more by a lack of vision than of technology. But a few scientists think they can use the sun’s light to cheaply propel an unmanned craft deep into the interstellar ether. Their vision may be quixotic, and their first attempt failed. But what will it mean for our solipsistic species if they succeed next time?
(Excerpt) Read more at theatlantic.com ...
This guy doesn’t know a photon from a photo-op.
Considering the Drake formula, I really don’t think there is any intelligent life in our universe and I don’t even think we should do any more than what we do via SETI.
What I would like to see, personally, is some intelligent life in the White House. Now, THAT I’m interested in. Maybe we could launch a voyage into that dark hole and see what we can find - I’m sure a janitor and maybe some of the cafeteria people would be good for intelligent life - definitely not in the Cabinet for sure.
“Intelligent life surely exists on some of the planets beyond our solar system.”
Does not exist here, why would it there.
“Intelligent life surely exists on some of the planets beyond our solar system.”
OK, where is the evidence?
Ummmm, we’ve been listening for intelligent life for decades... so far nothing - zip, zero, nada ... nothing - absolutely nothing.
Liberals don't need no stinkin' facts - theys got "feelings" 'bout things.
The existence of intelligent life, or any life at all for that matter, beyond Earth is a hypothesis. Such conjecture is not exclusively a liberal thought. I have $100 cash that says we will find at least microbes on Mars. Any takers? If you are VERY sure that there is not ET life, then take my money!
LOL So true!
While the idea is interesting, I’m not sure why we are so eager to find intelligent life elsewhere. I realize Hollywood, for the most part, has thought that any being intelligent enough to come here would be benign, or even helpful, I’m not so sure. I don’t want to be *served*.
Zero evidence - lots of stories - tons of money
Well, that certainly doesn’t prove it’s not there. All the SETI searches are doing is giving us an idea about how prevalent life is. SETI will never, ever, ever prove life doesn’t exit out there (as you seem to think) — until we’ve looked at every lump of rock in the universe.
Solar sails are a visionary and potentially useful technology, but, due to slow acceleration, they are not plausible for prime scientific destinations in the solar system. Even then, chemical rockets and nuclear powered ion engines have advantages and may prove the better choices.
Similarly, while suborbital and near earth space tourism will not lead to major technological innovations, they have a plausible business case and advance private space flight. The result will safe and routine space flight for ordinary people. Airplanes were just exciting toys and innovative weapons until businessmen worked out how to make a buck by flying passengers and cargo.
The most likely uses for a solar sail are for probes of the Kuiper belt and the Oort cloud and for placing telescopes at great distances. When those missions get budgeted for development, solar sail technology will get attention from NASA.
Were not even a Type I civilization yet...
Do we have to be to start this?
I think, realistically speaking, very, very few humans are ever going to jump into a spaceship and fly off to colonize 55 Cancri. The 99.9999% of us who remain behind will perhaps become a Type I civilization someday, if the muzzies or liberals don’t completely take over the planet. But we don’t have to wait until we’ve achieved Type I status to begin work on colonization. I think it would be a mistake to wait.
Just my opinion, but I don’t think we should wait. As soon as we have the ability, we should get moving.
Well, having been raised on Star Trek I love the idea of exploration. On the other hand, I’m not sure it’s really very likely because of the vast distances (don’t anything in our solar system is truly habitable in any way that makes sense).
Ah, nope! Where'd this moron learn his physics? Oh wait, he's a 'journalist.' IOW's he doesn't know Jack Sh...
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