Water found for first time on potentially habitable planet

Astronomers have for the first time discovered water in the atmosphere of a planet orbiting within the habitable zone of a distant star.
The finding makes the world - which is called K2-18b - a plausible candidate in the search for alien life.
Within 10 years, new space telescopes might be able to determine whether K2-18b's atmosphere contains gases that could be produced by living organisms.
Details were published in the scientific journal Nature Astronomy.
The lead scientist, Prof Giovanna Tinetti of University College London (UCL) described the discovery as "mind blowing".
"This is the first time that we have detected water on a planet in the habitable zone around a star where the temperature is potentially compatible with the presence of life," she said.
The habitable zone is the region around a star where temperatures are sufficiently benign for water to exist in liquid form on the surface of a planet.
K2-18b is 111 light-years - about 650 million million miles - from Earth, too far to send a probe. So the only option is to wait for the next generation of space telescopes to be launched in the 2020s and to look for gasses in the planet's atmosphere that could only be produced by living organisms, according to UCL's Dr Ingo Waldmann.

"This is one of the biggest questions in science and we have always wondered if we are alone in the Universe," Dr Waldmann said. "Within the next 10 years, we will know whether there are chemicals that are due to life in those atmospheres."

Ben Reilly wrote:

Tommy Monk wrote:I know the answers to my questions...

I am asking you if you know...?

I would love to hear your thoughts, then. Don't know why you're asking questions if you already have all the answers, though.

phildidge wrote:Hmmm. What is the reality of this situation?

If there is life there. It clearly sees life here as of no cocnern. Or is not at a stage to understand how we could be a threat to them.

because the reality is and through history. We have always looked to expand and colonise areas for our own benefit

So if we could reach this world. Do you not think that again humanity would not look to care about what illnesses we would pass onto them?

The reality is this and evolution proves this. Given half the chance. We would colonise and control this planet if the species there. Were lessw evolved than humans. Its part of human nature in a number of people. Its why we should never use people that have seen combat/war. As many suffer post traumatic stress. As they leave themselves open to conflictions.

Why are we so happy we have seen planet that can sustain life?

because it provides a potential hope for the future for humans to colonise ans survive.

Happy for people to disagree with me on this and prove me wrong

Tommy Monk wrote:So... considering the first claim that the current instruments have discovered water on this distant planet..?


How accurate are these current instruments...!?


Name me one planet that has had a claim of water being there, and has been conclusively proven to be accurate...!?




Also... these proposed new instruments... how are they going to be tested for guaranteeing their accuracy...!?

'Wolfie wrote:

phildidge wrote:Hmmm. What is the reality of this situation?

If there is life there. It clearly sees life here as of no cocnern. Or is not at a stage to understand how we could be a threat to them.

because the reality is and through history. We have always looked to expand and colonise areas for our own benefit

So if we could reach this world. Do you not think that again humanity would not look to care about what illnesses we would pass onto them?

The reality is this and evolution proves this. Given half the chance. We would colonise and control this planet if the species there. Were lessw evolved than humans. Its part of human nature in a number of people. Its why we should never use people that have seen combat/war. As many suffer post traumatic stress. As they leave themselves open to conflictions.

Why are we so happy we have seen planet that can sustain life?

because it provides a potential hope for the future for humans to colonise ans survive.

Happy for people to disagree with me on this and prove me wrong

Afraid not, Dodge...

Any life on a planet that is "111 light years/650 million million miles away" will quite possibly have disappeared thousands or even millions of years ago...

What the existence of life there will have proved is that were other planets capable of supporting life out there thousands, millions and billions of years ago..

And then there's the minor side issues of this particular planet's much stronger gravity and much thinner atmosphere --  meaning that any life that has/had developed there would necessarily be a fair bit different to that on Earth.

And that there may well be some other possible candidates for future "colonisation" much closer to home.  And not one that will entail a 'Battlestar Galactica' multi-generational exodus to some unknown destination where you only know what was happening to its climate more than a century ago..    What if there had been some 'advanced' civilisation there even when some future human "colonists" had left Earth millenia ago, and it self-destructed only a short while before our brave Trekians arrive there to find a dead desolate rock  ???

Or, of course, the more optimistic among us can always hang out hoping for the eventual discovery of Star Trek style 'Hyperdrive' or Stargate style 'wormholes', to facilitate future travel between the stars..

Lurker wrote:I feel sorry for Tommy Monk. He's a sad POS.

Tommy Monk wrote:Didge... I don't think you realise what fleakeeper is actually saying in his first point...


If we can see a planet that is 110 light years away... then what we are actually looking at , is a glimpse of the planet how it looked 100s of million years ago... as the light based vision we can see now, has actually taken 100s of million years to travel across the universe to reach us, and for us to be able to see it now...

Tommy Monk wrote:

Tommy Monk wrote:So... considering the first claim that the current instruments have discovered water on this distant planet..?


How accurate are these current instruments...!?


Name me one planet that has had a claim of water being there, and has been conclusively proven to be accurate...!?




Also... these proposed new instruments... how are they going to be tested for guaranteeing their accuracy...!?

Come on Ben... how about a couple of answers...!?

Ben Reilly wrote:

Tommy Monk wrote:


Come on Ben... how about a couple of answers...!?

Hahaha, sorry. This is obviously some little game you're trying to get me to play, and I'm not going to humor you. Say what you have to say or don't.

nicko wrote:No ones as sad as you mate !

Tommy Monk wrote:

Ben Reilly wrote:

Tommy Monk wrote:


Come on Ben... how about a couple of answers...!?

Hahaha, sorry. This is obviously some little game you're trying to get me to play, and I'm not going to humor you. Say what you have to say or don't.

If you can answer the questions correctly... then you will clearly see the folly of your faith...


Let me know when you are ready to consider the truth...?