Is there anybody else out there? Or are we the only living things in the universe? Humans have asked themselves this question for as long as anyone can remember. But so far, knowledge about the possibility of life in other planets have been minimal.
In 2009, NASA launched the ambitious discovery mission known as the Keppler Mission to look for possible life-supporting planets. On wednesday, NASA announced the discovery of 715 new Exoplanets (planets outside our own solar system) - this takes the total number of exoplanets discovered so far to 1700.
These 715 planets revolve around only 305 stars, meaning that they are a part of multiplanetory solar systems like our own. Even more interesting, four of these planets revolve around their sun in the 'habitable zone' - a zone which is neither too hot nor too cold for liquid water to exist. This further increases the chances for life to be present on similar planets. These new planets were discovered from data sent back by the Keppler mission between 2009 and 2011. Study of the data sent back from 2011 till now will probably pinpoint more such exoplanets.
Given the vastness of space, it was not possible for Keppler to study all of space and it is concentrating on the study of the Cygnus and Lyra constellations, since these constellations have an abundance of stars, just like our own star.
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The picture above is of the Keppler 22B, the first exoplanet discovered by the Keppler mission.
Keppler 22B, which is 2.4 times the size of our earth is our closest sister planet. It is 600 light years away, meaning that, travelling at the speed of light, it will take about 600 years to reach the planet. It is in the constellation Cygnus.
Why is it important to search for new habitable planets? The answer is that scientists believe that these are the key to survival of the human race. There are definite risks of the earth becoming inhabitable - either due to an impact by an asteroid or due to atmospheric changes due to solar flares or due to human actions like nuclear explosions. And unless some of the human race relocate to another habitable planet, this may well see the end of the human race.
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will be launched in 2018. The JWST is the successor to the Hubble telescope and has a massive mirror which will help it to collect more light. This will help to accurately analyze the atmospheric conditions of distant exoplanets and identify which planets have environmental conditions suitable for extraterrestrial life.
In 2009, NASA launched the ambitious discovery mission known as the Keppler Mission to look for possible life-supporting planets. On wednesday, NASA announced the discovery of 715 new Exoplanets (planets outside our own solar system) - this takes the total number of exoplanets discovered so far to 1700.
These 715 planets revolve around only 305 stars, meaning that they are a part of multiplanetory solar systems like our own. Even more interesting, four of these planets revolve around their sun in the 'habitable zone' - a zone which is neither too hot nor too cold for liquid water to exist. This further increases the chances for life to be present on similar planets. These new planets were discovered from data sent back by the Keppler mission between 2009 and 2011. Study of the data sent back from 2011 till now will probably pinpoint more such exoplanets.
Given the vastness of space, it was not possible for Keppler to study all of space and it is concentrating on the study of the Cygnus and Lyra constellations, since these constellations have an abundance of stars, just like our own star.
The picture above is of the Keppler 22B, the first exoplanet discovered by the Keppler mission.
Keppler 22B, which is 2.4 times the size of our earth is our closest sister planet. It is 600 light years away, meaning that, travelling at the speed of light, it will take about 600 years to reach the planet. It is in the constellation Cygnus.
Why is it important to search for new habitable planets? The answer is that scientists believe that these are the key to survival of the human race. There are definite risks of the earth becoming inhabitable - either due to an impact by an asteroid or due to atmospheric changes due to solar flares or due to human actions like nuclear explosions. And unless some of the human race relocate to another habitable planet, this may well see the end of the human race.
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will be launched in 2018. The JWST is the successor to the Hubble telescope and has a massive mirror which will help it to collect more light. This will help to accurately analyze the atmospheric conditions of distant exoplanets and identify which planets have environmental conditions suitable for extraterrestrial life.
