Super-Earth May Have Water-Rich Atmosphere

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Super-Earth May Have Water-Rich Atmosphere

A Japanese research team of astronomers and planetary scientists has used Subaru Telescope's two optical cameras, Suprime-Cam and the Faint Object Camera and Spectrograph (FOCAS), with a blue transmission filter to observe planetary transits of super-Earth GJ 1214 b (Gilese 1214 B ). The team investigated whether this planet has an atmosphere rich in water or hydrogen. The Subaru observations show that the sky of this planet does not show a strong Rayleigh scattering feature, which a cloudless hydrogen-dominated atmosphere would predict. When combined with the findings of previous observations in other colors, this new observational result implies that GJ 1214 b is likely to have a water-rich atmosphere.

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Edited September 8, 2013 by Waspie_Dwarf

[Big Bad Voodoo]

Well we probably will never get there to see it with own eyes.

Big Bad Voodoo

[spacecowboy342]

What does this tell us about dark matter?

[Waspie_Dwarf]

What does this tell us about dark matter?

I'm not sure what it tells us about dark matter but it says a lot about dense matter... me. I had the wrong title to the post. I've fixed it now.

[ancient astronaut]

It's not like we can up and go see it.

[Moon Gazer]

Oh great, another planet for us to screw up if we ever make it there.

[marcos anthony toledo]

How are they sure that a watery super earth didn't exist in this solar system. I remember reading in Science 81 or 82 about such a world existing between Mars and Jupiter four million years ago four times the size of Earth.

[moonshadow60]

Well, for some reason it gives me hope to know there is another planet out there that may sustain life after we are all gone. I hope we don't get the chance to use this planet all up and then move to another. This is where humankind deserves to end, right where we are now.

Marcos; are you talking about Phaeton?

Edited September 6, 2013 by moonshadow60

[brlesq1]

I'd like to see it, though I never will. And if humans decide to colonize, I hope they take some lessons learned on the Mother Planet with them. All very optimistic, of course.

[highdesert50]

It is interesting to speculate on the life that could exist on an Earth-like planet that having twice the gravity. I suppose the Hulk might even look like a wimp.

[NIGHTRAVEN]

Let's hope there's life on that planet. Inetlligent or not; it's still life.

[tritchey24]

We'll never make it there. Even if you take the fastest made made object ever, which is Helios 2 Spacecraft it will still take a very very long time. If this Planet is 40 Light years from us, that means it's 234 Trillion miles away! Ok, so we hop in the fastest spacecraft ever, traveling 157,078 mph. Even traveling at that speed, it would take us 170,514 years to get there one way. 170 Thousand years!! Sorry guys, were not getting there anytime soon!