Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Possible Water World Found 20 Light Years Away

It looks like they found a pretty good candidate for life in a nearby solar system.

Computer models predict Gliese 581 C is either a rocky planet like
Earth or a waterworld covered entirely by oceans.


"We have estimated that the mean temperature of this super-Earth
lies between 0 and 40 degrees Celsius [32 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit], and water
would thus be liquid," Udry said.

We need to send a probe out to take a look at this planet. Too bad it will take at least a generation or two to get back any data from the thing.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Joe. The water world is near a red giant thus may not have enough light to support life unless close in to the sun. Dad