Posted on 02/22/2017 3:26:41 PM PST by Salman
In 1950, physicist Enrico Fermi famously asked, "Where are they?" as a kind of lament about the lack of observational evidence for alien intelligence in our universe. Today, the question is still asked in the context of the always-hoped-for discovery of other worlds like our own, with the thought that maybe, just maybe, we will finally find those aliens.
...
The two most fruitful methods for discovering exoplanets (the "transit method" and the "radial velocity method") both give a straightforward way to determine the distance between a star and an exoplanet. That, together with our knowledge of how much heat is given off by the star, lets us calculate whether the planet is in the star's habitable zone. But, as we have seen, that is not the same thing as discovering a habitable planet.
Nevertheless, discoveries of planets in the habitable zones of other stars have been identified in the media and even in press releases of scientific institutions as discoveries of second Earths. Since we do not know the surface temperatures of any exoplanet, whether they are actual Earth analogues can only be guessed at using other lines of evidence.
...
(Excerpt) Read more at spacedaily.com ...
It is just as possible that the rest of our solar system is sterile, and that there are billions of solar systems with only one viable planet, and tens of billions or hundreds of billions with more than one life bearing planet.
Yesterday, I found a VERY complex assembly of organic molecules in my yard.
It weighed a few pounds, I suppose, and looked VERY similar to living organisms that scamper from tree to tree; performing inhuman feats of aerobatic gymnastics.
I couldn't tell how many minutes (hours?) had passed since this assembly actually was a LIVING complex assembly of organic molecules; but it sure wasn't when I lifted it by it's bushy tail.
It appeared to be missing nothing that would have caused it to be NON-living: no holes, no leakage - just no LIFE!!
In all of human experience; we've NEVER detected LIFE coming from NON-life.
It ALWAYS takes something LIVING to propagate itself.
One of the greatest space traveler of our time has said repeatedly...
Who'd be silly enough to waste their OWN money on this?
Voyager is slow compared to Helios II. Proxima Centauri is one of three stars in a cluster and is not visible with the naked eye. It is 4.24 light years away only slightly closer than Alpha Centauri which is 4.37 light years away from our Sun.
Reading about speeds, there was a spacecraft named “Juno” that had a speed of 165,000 mph. Helios II estimated at 157,000. The difference was that Juno was going directly at Jupiter and accelerated due to the gravity of Jupiter.
Interesting stuff!
I have no clue if that statement is true but I am calling B$ on it anyway because the likelihood of a really stupid program existing without taxpayer support is as likely as finding inhabitable planets other than Earth in our solar system.
Then my advice to you is to not let BS take the place of what's between your ears, it's unbecoming of you. SETI is a legitimate group of volunteers that can easily be verified.........
Good points. Not as long as we are constrained by the laws of physics. Or the laws as we current understand them.
But isn’t that the point.
The micro (and our understanding of it) can directly affect the micro — example: nuclear energy, the atomic bomb.
Lol. Do they have nice beaches?
.
This is a fantasy that needs to die quicker than soon.
.
.
No life is out there, so we obviously cannot measure its intelligence.
After over 40 years of operation, SETI has absolutely nothing to show for its consumption of resources.
.
.
SETI is a bunch of hopeless dreamers.
.
Maybe they’re so different or so far advanced that we wouldn’t even recognize their existence, or have any way to receive their signals.
Some people have suggested that there may even be intelligent life forms on our own planet that we simply don’t recognize. They could be ‘invisible’ to us, at this stage.
It must be boring to be so certain of everything.
Strange how NASA’S morphed , literally overnight, to a scientific agency. Post Obama. Huh...
Agreed. but not for the reasons you state.
As a technology, I believe radio transmission to be a very short lived means of communication for a developing civilization - something that pops up for a century or two before it is superseded by something better. Quantum entanglement or a holographic understanding of the universe.
Radio signals may be the cosmic equivalent of smoke signals. Even if you recognize the smoke as a primitive attempt at communication, you might choose avoid contact with savage, woo woo indians.
When I was young, NASA was very exciting.
I think the future lies with individuals and private enterprises.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.