NASA's Prolific Planet Hunter: Kepler Telescope By-The-Numbers-(1235 in Milky Way)

space ^ | February 2, 2011 05.32pm EST | by Tariq Malik, SPACE.com Managing Editor

[Flavius]

NASA's Kepler mission has made a discovery of several hundred potential planets orbiting the Milky Way, five of which are similar to Earth and located in the habitable zone.

"In one generation we have gone from extraterrestrial planets being a mainstay of science fiction, to the present, where Kepler has helped turn science fiction into today's reality," NASA chief Charles Bolden said in a statement. "These discoveries underscore the importance of NASA's science missions, which consistently increase understanding of our place in the cosmos."

[Flavius]

And it gets better: of those planets found, 54 are in their stars’ habitable zones. Now, many of these are massive planets unlikely to be Earth-like, but the huge news is that five are near-Earth sized, and one is actually very close to Earth’s size!

If this pans out, then it implies there could be a million Earth-like planets in the Milky Way galaxy.

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2011/02/02/motherlode-of-potential-planets-found-more-than-1200-alien-worlds/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bk4XN3KtOCg&feature=player_embedded

[battousai]

several hundred potential planets orbiting the Milky Way

Odd choice of words, the planets are orbiting stars within the Milky Way galaxy, unless these are some wierd planets orbiting the galaxy itself oO

[Vaquero]

Ping

[Moonman62]

And it gets better: of those planets found, 54 are in their stars’ habitable zones. Now, many of these are massive planets unlikely to be Earth-like, but the huge news is that five are near-Earth sized, and one is actually very close to Earth’s size!

Giant planets that are in the habitable zone probably have moons that are Earth-like.

[null and void]

And it gets better: of those planets found, 54 are in their stars’ habitable zones.

Habitable zones being defined as where there could be liquid water.

What temperature range are they using for “liquid water”?

Serious question. Think it through, what you think you know isn't always correct.

[MNDude]

those are some really fascinating statistics of how many stars have planets. We never used to have a clue. I’m still pretty doubtful about any having life though.

[Flavius]

The State of UFO Disclosure - Press Conference

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDwKoGVbasY&playnext=1&list=PL5B3BDE29CF974937

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wc5y49A1IdM

Boyd Bushman (1936–) is a retired senior research engineer who worked for Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, Texas Instruments and Hughes Aircraft. Regarded as one of the inventors of the Stinger missile.[citation needed]

CAREER CLASSIFICATIONS: PROGRAM MANAGER & SENIOR SCIENTIST

EXPERIENCE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf5DOpWtRfg&playnext=1&list=PL0830087D7B798127

[null and void]

That would be way cool! Imaging having a Jupiter filling half the sky!

[cripplecreek]

unless these are some wierd planets orbiting the galaxy itself

Actually I suspect there are a lot of planets wandering through space unbound to stars. (not that we're seeing them)

[from occupied ga]

If this pans out, then it implies there could be a million Earth-like planets in the Milky Way galaxy.

So what? A few scientists get to publish papers doing something that the taxpayers paid for. The aerospace industries that made the Kepler made a fat profit on it, again at the taxpayers' expense, but what's the benefit to those of us who gave up real tangible money to pay for it. I can't think of any benefit.

[null and void]

AKA interstellar navigation hazards...

[cripplecreek]

I imagined this one just a few hours ago.

[null and void]

Where would Italian cooking be without new world tomatoes? How about Switzerland without chocolate? Ireland without potatoes? No beans. No tobacco. No corn...

What use is an ultrasound of a fetus?

[null and void]

Yeah! Perfect!

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

NASA's Kepler mission has made a discovery of several hundred potential planets orbiting the Milky Way, five of which are similar to Earth and located in the habitable zone.

This sentence must be written wrong.

How can a planet that is orbiting a galaxy be consider to be in a habitable zone?

Perhaps it should read 'orbiting within the Milky Way'.

[AFreeBird]

So you think God made all that just for us?

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

Imaging having a Jupiter filling half the sky!

Yeah. You could barbecue a burger on your head. The radiation wouldn't be survivable that close to a Jupiter-like planet. It would have to have a completely different composition than Jupiter.

[from occupied ga]

would Italian cooking ... No tobacco etc.

Are you seriously trying to postulate that the discovery of planets in the habitable zone of some star many light years away will have the same sort of impact that the discovery of a new continent had? Do you really think that we could possibly get something material from a chunk of rock many light years away? Do you have any idea of how many thousands of human lifetimes it would take even a robot probe to get there?

[null and void]

Are you seriously trying to postulate that the discovery of planets in the habitable zone of some star many light years away will have the same sort of impact that the discovery of a new continent had?

Yeah. Pretty much.

Do you really think that we could possibly get something material from a chunk of rock many light years away?

Yes. But you should note that everything I mentioned (except tobacco and chocolate) can be grown locally in Europe, and those could be grown in the old world tropics. I'm not saying import perishables! (Also note that I specifically avoided mentioning gold and silver)

Do you have any idea of how many thousands of human lifetimes it would take even a robot probe to get there?

Yes. It would be like building a Cathedral.

I note that you are assuming we will never develop anything faster than rockets to get there...