Astronomers to sweep entire sky for signs of extraterrestrial life

The Guardian ^ | February 14, 2020 | Hannah Devlin

[4Runner]

Three Earth-sized planets orbiting a cool, dim star called Trappist-1 in the constellation of Aquarius will be high up on the hit list. Computer models suggest the Trappist-1 system is among the most promising for finding planets with atmospheres and temperatures that would enable liquid water to exist on the surface.

“The James Webb Telescope will be able to tell us whether they have atmospheres like the Earth or Venus,” said Meadows. “It gives us our first real chance to search for gases given off by life on another planet. We’re basically going to get to study Earth’s cousins.”

[stockpirate]

Jesus said, “In my fathers house are many mansions, if this were not so I would have told you.”

[Doctor DNA]

Artificial Intelligence may be inevitable for any interstellar civilization. AI equals Artificial Life.

If AI from two different civilizations make contact, what could be the possible results?

From our own AI research .... interesting results.
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/explained-artificial-intelligence-race-arms-race-119326

So there may be hope that peaceful interstellar relationships are the norm.

As the Whopper computer figured out in the movie “WarGames”: “The only winning move is not to play.”

[P.O.E.]

What’s separating us from other civilizations, if there are any, is the enormous time lag due to distance.

[RealVirginia]

They are assuming that life requires Earth-like conditions. Too many assumptions.

[I want the USA back]

Just a lot of hype, designed to milk money out of private individuals and the government.

[DoodleBob]

And what will the do IF they find any???

Seriously, if you read the article, the Trappist-1 system is about 40 light years from Earth. Thus, if there was life there, they've been picking up any broadcasts etc through 1980. I did some further research, and all seven planets there are likely to have one side of each planet permanently facing the star, which basically means its day or night all the time, i.e. No life.

God created the Universe and Earth and thus I don't have any problem exploring the heavens. But there are zillions of problems associated with the speed needed for interstellar travel where, even if we found ET, we could never visit him. And if we did, he would eat us or enslave us.

Searching for life on other planets is the same as searching for Bigfoot... the Bigfoot searchers come across as wackos while ET searchers have better credentials and more expensive equipment and better PR people. There is really little between these two groups of people.

[Honest Nigerian]

Sweep the sky?
That is going to take a Big F***ing Broom.

[Carl Vehse]

A planet orbiting in the temperate zone of a cool, dim star will need to be very close to the star, and thus tidally locked (like our moon) with one side always facing the star and the other side facing away. UV and plasma ejections from the star will likely have stripped away any atmosphere (as well as any liquid water) the planet might have had.

But nowadays it’s the extraterrestrial-life hype in astronomy that gets the funding. And when the findings are negative, there will be reasons advanced for the need of larger and more expensive instruments to search for life on some “Earth-like” (but otherwise very dissimilar) exoplanets.

[Roccus]

There you go again.

Clouding the issue with common sense and logic.

[oldasrocks]

Search here? That would be a waste of time. I am beginning to believe there is no intelligent life here.

[Oscar in Batangas]

Hey, I’m not the one spending those tax dollars ‘Searching for Spok’ or whatever.

Pick on the astronomers and the idjits giving them the (OUR) money.

Me, I’m just a poor coffee farmer in Batangas!!!

[fso301]

Another attempt to get more grant money from sources too ignorant to know the technical impossibilities of communicating across vast interstellar distances.

The power amplifiers of any such alien transmitters would need a star as a power source.

[fso301]

Can’t you believe I God AND accept the idea that we ma not be alone?

Implicitly! God and the angels are out there and we are here.

[fso301]

Why do these people always assume other civilizations are more advanced than us?

[Leep]

Missed a spot ...that's funny.

[fso301]

I often wonder what the point of that is

There is at least one episode where they say Judeo-Christianity has it all wrong. Satan and his demons are the good guys who came to help humans but are only portrayed as bad by the bible.

[abclily]

God made the whole universe. We have no idea what all he created. All of the creation energy came from God.

[Wonder Warthog]

"The answer to that is between zero and none."

Nope....wrong. A great many scientists were and are religious, including Einstein. Full atheist scientists are few and far between.

[SunkenCiv]

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[Delta 21]

https://www.10tv.com/article/mysterious-deep-space-radio-burst-sending-signals-earth-every-16-days-2020-feb