Thought this was interesting....

[Xaiveir]

PARIS (Reuters) - The first satellite dedicated solely to seeking out new planets beyond our solar system will be launched next month, the European Space Agency (ESA) said on Tuesday.
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The French project, dubbed COROT, will send into orbit a telescope capable of detecting smaller planets than is currently possible -- some maybe just a few times the size of Earth and rocky, rather than the larger, gaseous types, ESA said.

"COROT could detect so many planets of this new type, together with plenty of the old type, that astronomers will be able to make statistical studies of them," Malcolm Fridlund, ESA's project scientist for COROT, said in a statement.

That would enable scientists to make predictions of the number and type of planets orbiting a given star, said ESA, which is participating in the project.

Planets have been found orbiting stars other than the sun but they have never been seen. Instead, scientists have deduced they are there based on the stars' "wobble," the result of the gravitational pull of planets revolving around them.

COROT, a project of the French National Space Studies Center (CNES), will be able to detect smaller, rocky planets by using a different method.

It will measure the light emitted by a star and detect the drop in brightness caused when a planet passes in front it.

Like the larger planets found so far, however, these new ones will have to be orbiting close to their star.

The satellite is due to be launched on December 21.

In 2008, the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (
NASA) is due to launch the first space telescope capable of detecting Earth-sized planets in similar orbits to ours, ESA said.

[Xaiveir]

That was taken from Yahoo news today. I hit the submit button before i was done there. Anyway, i think it will be very interesting to see how many of the smaller plantets that this will be able to detect. I really wish NASA had its funding increased to really explore space more than it does.

[Spazz]

cuz ya know exploring space atm is more important than the economy the budget crazy arabs etc. I think at the moment they need thier funding cut to non existant same with every other non needed thing.

[ClakarEQ]

I think space does need investigation and discoveries are many to be had, bla bla, and all of that, I agree.

However having a habitable planet to live on, like this one, and being able to keep it habitable is a wee bit more important.

We are going to self-fuck this place into oblivian in less than 200 years at the rate we're going. Perhaps money should be spent on makeing where we are today and for the 100's of years to come a more "happy place".

Hell just yesterday NPR was saying how the US allows more toxins into items than a few other world superpowers just for the sake of the economy. I hate how we only worship money, all we care about is money, give me some, give me more, fuck you all I want everything and I want it now.

BTW, where is my latte(sp)?

[Naethyn]

At some point this is all going to end. If we don't have the technology before it happens our time is over. Personally, I think funding research for space will produce far better results than funding a war. Which very well may be the reason that end comes.

[Zanchief]

At some point this is all going to end. If we don't have the technology before it happens our time is over. Personally, I think funding research for space will produce far better results than funding a war. Which very well may be the reason that end comes.

[Spazz]

I dont think funding space is gonna help us out with the problems we have right now. Infact fuck nasa all together lets use any money theyd get and put it towards not using GAS anymore.

[Burgy99]

I'm all for spending money on space exploration as opposed to this stupid war.

I remember reading way back in the day, the disgusting amount of fuel it takes to get a shuttle into space. The number was huge. You'd think by now they would use some form of nuclear energy or something. Maybe these days they do, I don't really read too much into the subject as i'd like to / should.

[Spazz]

Im all for not spending money on the war or fuckin space.

[Narrock]

The world as we know it will cease to exist by 2012 and we will have to make drastic changes in order to survive.

[Spazz]

Thats what im sayin. The changes arent gonna be made by finding other planets we cant get to and have no use of or finding water on mars. I vote nasa gets cut the fuck off till we have real world problems undercontroll. Once the shit down here is running smooth then they can go back to hoping to find wookies and the jedi council and other planets we can ruin with our human nonsense. For fucks sake i think people are brain dead sometimes .

[Arlos]

You're insane. That's like saying we should cut off all basic research in other sciences.

Do you have any idea how many consumer products and technologies exist today because of the US space program? Far more than just "Tang", I assure you.

Space research not only has practical benefits, but also increases our fundamental understanding of the nature of the universe and our place in it. Fundamental pure research is ALWAYS a necessity, no matter the scientific field.

NASA's budget is a complete pittance, compared to what is spent on other things. There are absolutely tangible benefits to getting better at living and working in space. Drugs or metal alloys that can only get made in microgravity. Asteroids that can be mined for metals without despoiling earth's environment. etc. etc. etc.

If anything, we should be putting MORE money into space. The potential return on investment is gigantic. There will *ALWAYS* be "problems" here on earth to be dealt with, we will never achieve a utopic society with no issues like you give as a demand and precondition to spending money on space research. Therefore, such a request as yours would result in an outright permanent cessation of all research, which is unconscionable, and cannot even begin to be considered.

NASA's budget in 2005 was 16 billion. How much are we spending on Iraq each month, 50?

-Arlos

[Burgy99]

You're insane. That's like saying we should cut off all basic research in other sciences.

Do you have any idea how many consumer products and technologies exist today because of the US space program? Far more than just "Tang", I assure you.

Space research not only has practical benefits, but also increases our fundamental understanding of the nature of the universe and our place in it. Fundamental pure research is ALWAYS a necessity, no matter the scientific field.

NASA's budget is a complete pittance, compared to what is spent on other things. There are absolutely tangible benefits to getting better at living and working in space. Drugs or metal alloys that can only get made in microgravity. Asteroids that can be mined for metals without despoiling earth's environment. etc. etc. etc.

If anything, we should be putting MORE money into space. The potential return on investment is gigantic. There will *ALWAYS* be "problems" here on earth to be dealt with, we will never achieve a utopic society with no issues like you give as a demand and precondition to spending money on space research. Therefore, such a request as yours would result in an outright permanent cessation of all research, which is unconscionable, and cannot even begin to be considered.

NASA's budget in 2005 was 16 billion. How much are we spending on Iraq each month, 50?

-Arlos

[Lueyen]

I'm all for spending money on space exploration as opposed to this stupid war.

I remember reading way back in the day, the disgusting amount of fuel it takes to get a shuttle into space. The number was huge. You'd think by now they would use some form of nuclear energy or something. Maybe these days they do, I don't really read too much into the subject as i'd like to / should.

Most likely totally irrational, but the thought of a Challenger like incident only next time it being a nuclear explosion flashed through my mind.

The world as we know it will cease to exist by 2012 and we will have to make drastic changes in order to survive.

I'm gonna bite here and ask why do you say that? Honestly with current world and US trends, I think it's realistically possible that within the next 5 to 10 years we could see terrorist actions involving a nuclear detonation within the borders of the United States. That would significantly change a lot of things overnight.

[Gargamellow]

is it scary when they are spending money to find a new "earth-like" planet? or is it just me?

hmmmmmmmmmmm

[Burgy99]

I'm all for spending money on space exploration as opposed to this stupid war.

I remember reading way back in the day, the disgusting amount of fuel it takes to get a shuttle into space. The number was huge. You'd think by now they would use some form of nuclear energy or something. Maybe these days they do, I don't really read too much into the subject as i'd like to / should.

Most likely totally irrational, but the thought of a Challenger like incident only next time it being a nuclear explosion flashed through my mind.

Good point. If I recall, Challenger happened because of a small overlook - worn O rings I think. With today's space travel being at it's safest times that should not have happened But you look at our submarines and naval fleet, which have been using nuclear power for some time with out incident.

[Arlos]

And remember the furor and controversy when we launched the Cassini probe. The anti-space people were all up in arms claiming that it was going to crash and kill off a huge chunk of the planet cause of nuke fuel scattering over the continent. (never mind that that's impossible, given the way the fuel is constructed and stored).

What happened? Cassini worked flawlessly, and has provided spectacular information back from Saturn & Titan.

Now, if you ever hear NASA talking about restarting up something called the Orion Project, then you would have something to worry about.

OK, I realize that will be overly cryptic for most people. Basically, the Orion project is a method of nuclear propulsion. We know it will work, but the side effects are... extreme.

Basically, you construct a space ship, big as you like, and stick it on a large curved metal plate, with a thin layer of an ablative substance like oil, etc. Seriously, size is no object. Want to launch an aircraft carrier into orbit? Orion will do it.

Basically, what you do is you punt a a-bomb out the back of the assembly, under the large metal base plate, and wait for it to go boom. The force of the explosion will lift the craft & plate up into the air, and the thin layer of oil ablates away, preventing the explosion from ablating the plate itself.

Then, you wait til the upward momentum starts to peter out, and you punt another a-bomb out the back, re-seed the oil onto the underside of the plate, and wait for that one to go off. The concave shape of the bottom plate helps direct the force to keep you going up instead of skittering off to one side, and you keep repeating the process until you finally make it to orbit.

That's the Orion project. The advantage is that you can literally lift any amount of weight into orbit. The scientists who designed the original ship were planning on deliberately bringing special barbers chairs that weighed 5 tons each, just because they could. The largest modern rockets can lift just over 20 tons into orbit. Orion could EASILY lift 20 THOUSAND tons into orbit.

The downside, of course, is that you've set off several hundred large atomic bombs in the atmosphere, in a vertical column. Not only is whatever you launched over going to be utterly destroyed, the fallout and environmental damage is going to be massive and widespread, to put it mildly. Lets just say that the impact of Chernobyl was minor compared to what Orion would do.

-Arlos

[Minrott]

Narrock wrote:
The world as we know it will cease to exist by 2012 and we will have to make drastic changes in order to survive.


I'm gonna bite here and ask why do you say that?

That's probably the projected year whatever cult he belongs to thinks some kind of rapture is going to occur.

At some point this is all going to end. If we don't have the technology before it happens our time is over.

If by "our" you mean inept city dwellers. Once they all implode the rest of us will get along just fine.

[Tikker]

Im all for not spending money on the war or fuckin space.

best way to save money would be to just stop spending money on prosecuting and incarcerating drug users


a single bullet to the face is much cheaper, and no risk of repeat offenders

[Spazz]

Yea thats a good way to represent freedom.

[Dylan]

At some point this is all going to end. If we don't have the technology before it happens our time is over. Personally, I think funding research for space will produce far better results than funding a war. Which very well may be the reason that end comes.

UNITED STATES OF SPACE MOTHAFUKA!

[Tikker]

Yea thats a good way to represent freedom.

it has nothing to do with freedom, but cleansing the gene pool while freeing up cash for important thigns

[Dylan]

If you do that then spazz won't be around to reap the benefits of global war

[Gargamellow]

nice idea naet...2 bad the world sucks

[Naethyn]

Narrock wrote:
The world as we know it will cease to exist by 2012 and we will have to make drastic changes in order to survive.


I'm gonna bite here and ask why do you say that?

That's probably the projected year whatever cult he belongs to thinks some kind of rapture is going to occur.

At some point this is all going to end. If we don't have the technology before it happens our time is over.

If by "our" you mean inept city dwellers. Once they all implode the rest of us will get along just fine.

By "our" I mean the human species. I really hope we make it! Humans are very adaptable. It's a good thought to think we have the potential to improve our adaptability through technology. Maybe even to the point of avoiding many cataclysmic events that are coming. It is not a question of if. It is a question of when.