The chances of anything coming from Mars...

Castiel · 16 May 2011 at 20:10

are a lot less likely than finding life on Gliese 581d according to scientists from the Institute Pierre Simon Laplace, Paris.

The planetary system around the red dwarf Gliese 581, one of the closest stars to the Sun in the galaxy, has been the subject of several studies aiming to detect the first potentially habitable exoplanet. Two candidates have already been discarded, but a third planet, Gliese 581d, can be considered the first confirmed exoplanet that could support Earth-like life.

At only 20 light years away, could this be the first port of call for the great Human diaspora into the Cosmos in the future?

If Gliese 581d does turn out to be habitable, it would still be a pretty strange place to visit -- the denser air and thick clouds would keep the surface in a perpetual murky red twilight, and its large mass means that surface mavity would be around double that on Earth. But the diversity of planetary climates in the galaxy is likely to be far wider than the few examples we are used to from the Solar System. In the long run, the most important implication of these results may be the idea that life-supporting planets do not in fact need to be particularly like Earth at all.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110516080124.htm

I wanna be a spaceman......

IceBus · 16 May 2011 at 20:15

If we land a man on another planet in my lifetime I'll be happy, I think asking for us to land on another Earth-like planet is a tad unrealistic.

Nerusy · 16 May 2011 at 20:15

20 light years away, even if we do manage to travel at the speed of light it'd take 20 years to get there : /

On the other hand awesome find

Castiel · 16 May 2011 at 20:16

IceBus said:
If we land a man on another planet in my lifetime I'll be happy, I think asking for us to land on another Earth-like planet is a tad unrealistic.

I don't think you will find that I actually said anything of the sort.

PMKeates · 16 May 2011 at 20:16

Nerusy said:
20 light years away, even if we do manage to travel at the speed of light it'd take 20 years to get there : /

Have you ever even seen Star Trek?

Castiel · 16 May 2011 at 20:17

Nerusy said:
20 light years away, even if we do manage to travel at the speed of light it'd take 20 years to get there : /

On the other hand awesome find

Apparently it would take Voyager 300,000 years to reach it, which is pretty awe inspiring to consider just how far 20 light years is.

Curio · 16 May 2011 at 20:19

Nerusy said:
20 light years away, even if we do manage to travel at the speed of light it'd take 20 years to get there : /

Thanks for that, Patrick Moore

I would love to see us set foot on another planet in my lifetime. Reckon I've got 50-60 years left. Fingers crossed!

RomanNose · 16 May 2011 at 20:26

Imagine if they got all the way there and you found an Squeaky 12 year old who accidently his mini tardis.

asim18 · 16 May 2011 at 20:34

PMKeates said:
Have you ever even seen Star Trek?

Set a course for Mars, maximum warp!

Cosimo · 16 May 2011 at 20:37

If anything it will come from here:

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18275488

meghatronic · 16 May 2011 at 20:38

asim18 said:
Set a course for Mars, maximum warp!

Warping within a planetary system, particularly the Solar System, is frowned upon.

Castiel · 16 May 2011 at 20:40

meghatronic said:
Warping within a planetary system, particularly the Solar System is frowned upon.

Unless you are doing the slingshot time travel save the whales save the universe malarkey, then it's OK....

SiriusB · 16 May 2011 at 20:49

meghatronic said:
Warping within a planetary system, particularly the Solar System, is frowned upon.

But it's ok to warp away from planets in every other star system, as seen in pretty much every Star Trek episode?

Feek · 16 May 2011 at 21:32

Are a million to one, they said.

PermaBanned · 16 May 2011 at 21:42

meghatronic said:
Warping within a planetary system, particularly the Solar System, is frowned upon.

Actually i think you'll find the NX-Alpha and Beta warp test flights all took place within the Sol System, ending up somewhere near Jupiter's orbit. And Cochrane's Phoenix, but that goes without saying

*returns to hiding*

semi-pro waster · 16 May 2011 at 21:46

Feek said:
Are a million to one, they said.

Good taste gents.

I fear we're going to have to do some work on renaming this other planet if people are going to live on it. It's going to be pronounced correctly even less frequently than Milngavie.

stickman1 · 16 May 2011 at 22:33

semi-pro waster said:
Good taste gents.

I fear we're going to have to do some work on renaming this other planet if people are going to live on it. It's going to be pronounced correctly even less frequently than Milngavie.

i can prononce it i used to live there

Milngavie that is

PermaBanned · 16 May 2011 at 22:35

semi-pro waster said:
Good taste gents.

I fear we're going to have to do some work on renaming this other planet if people are going to live on it. It's going to be pronounced correctly even less frequently than Milngavie.

...Vulcan?

nydryl · 16 May 2011 at 22:37

Happily singing the song when I came into the thread but 'are a lot less likely than finding life on Gliese 581d according to scientists from the Institute Pierre Simon Laplace, Paris' doesn't have quite the same ring to it as 'are a million to one, he said'.

Tikkabhuna · 16 May 2011 at 22:40

Nerusy said:
20 light years away, even if we do manage to travel at the speed of light it'd take 20 years to get there : /

On the other hand awesome find

You're obviously not thinking with portals.