Yankee
Winger
Those images are marvellous.Amazing photo's
James Webb telescope: Amazing images show the Universe as never before
It's a year since the James Webb telescope launched, and we've marvelled at its pictures ever since.www.bbc.co.uk
James Webb Space Telescope
- Thread starter The Lambton Worm
- Start date
I like the drag button, totally different
James Webb telescope detects dust storm on distant world
The new super space telescope makes unprecedented observations of a far-off planet's atmosphere.
www.bbc.co.uk
Hawyatt Earp
Striker
Webb Discovers Methane, Carbon Dioxide in Atmosphere of K2-18 b
A new investigation with NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope into K2-18 b, an exoplanet 8.6 times as massive as Earth, has revealed the presence of carbon-bearing molecules including methane and carbon dioxide.
Webb might be about to make the biggest discovery in human history
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DaveH
Striker
It is amazing that we can see this depth now. The first exo planet was discovered in 1992. Before then people was asking if other planets could exist or if our solar system was unique. While most researchers in the field said other planets were likely, there were still some that said we were probably unique.
Until a few years ago it was thought that planets could not exist around binary stars. Binaries are a bit odd. Because the mass of one star is not significantly bigger than the other, rather than the smaller one orbiting around the other, they both orbit around a common centre of mass. Basically an empty point somewhere between the two. But it means to anything in orbit around them, you don't have stable gravity and it would create gravitational forces like our sun & moon tidal forces but on steroids. Stronger gravity if you were on the same side of this imaginary point as the larger star, then a few days later weaker gravity affecting your planet if you were on the opposite side.
Most believed planets would be ripped apart by these changing forces - and then they found some. What is cool is that the scientific community have labelled rocky planets found in orbit around binary stars as Tatooine worlds.
The graph on the top right of this page shows the rate of discovery:
Discoveries of exoplanets - Wikipedia
Now we are not only finding planets, but can look into the atmosphere's of these planets and make educated guesses as to the elements and potential biology on those planets. This doesn't mean an advanced civilisation is living there, with technology beyond our dreams, solutions to our world problems and a better Nectar card scheme. It is most likely that it is something like stromatolites, which were the only real form of life on earth for at least a couple of billion years:
Stromatolite - Wikipedia
It would still be a massive discovery though and another step to answering if we are alone.
Do other stars exist? Yes, known for a few hundred years or more
Do other planets exist? Yes, known for over 30 years now
Does some form of life exist on other planets? We might answer this very soon
Does advanced life (animals) exist on other planets?
Does intelligent life exist on other planets?
Two down in the big questions.....
double maxim
Striker
I suspect it will end up discovering more than just some new and further away things to look at, the ability to look that far back will allow for deeper discoveries about the formulation of the universe.
There has already been some reporting that "jwst has broken cosmology" because it has found much larger galaxies much further back in time than some think could have been formed in the big bang model. Or something.
There has already been some reporting that "jwst has broken cosmology" because it has found much larger galaxies much further back in time than some think could have been formed in the big bang model. Or something.
Unbalanced Views
Winger
It’s worth remembering our theories and ideas about the universe are based on the info we have at the time and some guesswork. As the quality and quantity of information increases, previous theories become obsolete to be replaced with new ones
gipetto
Striker
Jimmy Webb lad. Spidering all over the galaxy.
Aliens fly much quicker than that though mate.
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vinegar hill
Striker
We’d only need to find one microbe somewhere, then that’s it.
double maxim
Striker
That's it?
vinegar hill
Striker
Aye.
One microbe they find anywhere and that’s it, all bets are off.
double maxim
Striker
Sorry, not being sarky but all bets on what?
vinegar hill
Striker
Life in the universe.
Sorry have phrased it the wrong way me being a thicko.
I mean there’s the likelihood that life will exist all ower if they find just one microbe somewhere.
double maxim
Striker
Don't be daft, just interested in what you were driving at. Completely agree, as soon as we have more than one data point for life, even in its simplest form, we can at least confirm that we don't occupy some completely unique place in space and time.
The question then becomes how advanced is/was/can what's out there be.
I know it's Sci fi but I think we would have to master time or dimensions in order to meet other intelligent life. I just think the distances are too far for nuts and bolts craft to ever get between two civilisations.
vinegar hill
Striker
I agree, any aliens that are visiting us are time travellers without a doubt!
Osklen
Winger
It is amazing that we can see this depth now. The first exo planet was discovered in 1992. Before then people was asking if other planets could exist or if our solar system was unique. While most researchers in the field said other planets were likely, there were still some that said we were probably unique.
Until a few years ago it was thought that planets could not exist around binary stars. Binaries are a bit odd. Because the mass of one star is not significantly bigger than the other, rather than the smaller one orbiting around the other, they both orbit around a common centre of mass. Basically an empty point somewhere between the two. But it means to anything in orbit around them, you don't have stable gravity and it would create gravitational forces like our sun & moon tidal forces but on steroids. Stronger gravity if you were on the same side of this imaginary point as the larger star, then a few days later weaker gravity affecting your planet if you were on the opposite side.
Most believed planets would be ripped apart by these changing forces - and then they found some. What is cool is that the scientific community have labelled rocky planets found in orbit around binary stars as Tatooine worlds.
The graph on the top right of this page shows the rate of discovery:
Discoveries of exoplanets - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
Now we are not only finding planets, but can look into the atmosphere's of these planets and make educated guesses as to the elements and potential biology on those planets. This doesn't mean an advanced civilisation is living there, with technology beyond our dreams, solutions to our world problems and a better Nectar card scheme. It is most likely that it is something like stromatolites, which were the only real form of life on earth for at least a couple of billion years:
Stromatolite - Wikipedia
It would still be a massive discovery though and another step to answering if we are alone.
Do other stars exist? Yes, known for a few hundred years or more
Do other planets exist? Yes, known for over 30 years now
Does some form of life exist on other planets? We might answer this very soon
Does advanced life (animals) exist on other planets?
Does intelligent life exist on other planets?
Two down in the big questions.....
It always fascinates me that we are looking at something 120 years ago especially when you think how far our civilisation has changed in the same time. Sadly it would take something like 4.5 million years to travel there with our current technology. Unbelievable really.
Unbalanced Views
Winger
We were talking about Sci-Fi the other day and how the little communicators and tablets and video phones were Science Fiction in the 60s and 70s but are commonplace now
double maxim
Striker
More than a hop and a jump to time travel and dimension jumping though.
James Webb telescope makes 'JuMBO' discovery of planet-like objects in Orion
The new space observatory sees pairs of Jupiter-sized objects floating free between the stars.
www.bbc.co.uk
