Discovery of 'Goldilocks' planet Excites Scientist

Thursday, September 30, 2010

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA (KGO) -- The discovery of a new planet has astronomers talking with renewed excitement. After 11 years of looking, a team of scientists have discovered a planet in what they call the "habitable zone." This new planet is three times the mass of earth and circles a star called Gliese 581.

"This is really the first Goldilocks planet, the first planet that is roughly the right size and just the right distance to have liquid water on the surface," Paul Bulter of the Carnegie Institute of Washington said.

Liquid water is considered to be the key to life.

UC Santa Cruz Professor Steven Vogt says the possibilities are endless. He says the planet he helped discover does not rotate thus the bright side can be as hot as 160 degrees and the cold, dark side can drop to 25 degrees below zero, but there is a sweet spot. Dr. Vogt says

"So there's a great range of ecologitude that will create a lot of different niches for different kind of life to evolve stablely," Vogt said.

At the SETI Institute in Mountain View, the mission is to explore and understand the origin and prevalence of life in the universe. Thursday, Jill Tarter, the director of the Center for SETI Research, said she views this discovery as wonderful.

"We are heading into a time in which discoveries like this will come at a much faster pace," she said. "It's wonderful for people to know they can explore the question 'Are we here alone?' and be closer to scientific answers." Follow UFO Report on Twitter @http://twitter.com/uforeport2009

New Earth-like planet discovered- http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2010/sep/29/earth-like-planet-gliese-581g

Earth like Planet Discovered (Gliese 581g)- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quYQPO4H16A&feature=PlayList&p=03DEDCA45D...

First 'habitable zone' planet found outside solar system- http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/29/AR201009...

'Goldilocks planet just right for life- http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11444022

Newly Discovered Planet may support Human Life- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXhCQE5C9xI&

Strange Signal Comes From Alien Planet, Scientist Says- http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/10/11/scientist-claims-strange-signa...

CNN: Galaxy May be Full of 'Earths,' Alien life - http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/space/02/25/galaxy.planets.kepler/index.html

Man 'Must Prepare to Meet Alien Life Forms' (25/1/2010) -http://news.stv.tv/scotland/152841-man-must-prepare-to-meet-alien-life-forms/