Kepler Makes Discoveries Inside the Habitable Zone

NASA's Kepler mission has discovered two new planetary systems that include three super-Earth-size planets in the "habitable zone," the range of distance from a star where the surface temperature of an orbiting planet might be suitable for liquid water.

The size of Kepler-62f is now measured, but its mass and composition are not. However, based on previous studies of rocky exoplanets similar in size, scientists are able to estimate its mass by association. Scientists do not know whether life could exist on the newfound planets, but their discovery signals we are another step closer to finding a world similar to Earth around a star like our sun.

[okltsply]

The problem is these planets are 1, 200 light years away, in other words it would take a ship traveling at 650, 000, 000 miles an hour 1, 200 years to get there. A Mexican physicist has developed a theory for a "warp drive" that NASA says can be built. That's what we need to work on.

[BernardoSOUSAstudent]

I like the way Dr. Kaltenegger speaks. She so happy! ^^

[ZeppoWolf]

It is great watching people like her smile. As they talk about their stories life and discoveries. I'm guessing between now and 2015. Their has to be life out their. Otherwise I would not be here. HELLO The vastness of space is the biggest obstacle. Sorry I waded off topic. She makes me feel warm inside. A joy to watch respectfully. T
ake Care

[tstamper]

I'd like to sit down and have a few beers with Bill Vorucki. Brillance is never boring!

[BorcishHorde]

Why are you guys voting this guy down? He is answering his questions and correcting his mistakes. He isnt being an ass. Eduardo is being curious, and Vogel is helping him understand his curiosity more accurately. And you vote him down?

[MrPatrickStarr]

500 years ago the most advanced technology took 3 years to get Magellan around the world.
52 years ago the most advanced technology took 108 minutes to get Yuri Gagarin around the world.
Some time in the future the prospect of travelling 1200 light years will be achievable with a human lifetime

[SeanLynchXY]

Excellent point Vogal M. Mars Direct is a very exciting project and the engineering is on going.

[EduardoNasz]

Tha gravity cuantification to compare in any part in the space-time is function for thrre especials parameters, the orbital period, the size of the radius and the most important one is the polar plane...one more question...why you assume that the length to the star define completly the temperature on the surface and then the atmosphere compostion...

[RobSinclaire]

I don't think the Discovery of a New Planet could be more Charming than Lisa K!

[kenney]

can we see a real pic of the planets please

[sortodawy]

Re- watch they might talk about a possibility of living in a planet similar to the earth

[BorcishHorde]

Orion spacecraft. They are continually working on things like ion drives, no specific plans on exactly when or where they will be used but it's like trying to generate a new kind of boat propulsion. You don't need to know where the propulsion system is going to take you or when, but you can be damned sure if you design a new boat motor that is faster cheaper more reliable or more snazzy someone is gonna use it.

[EthanNin]

NASA, The European Space Agency is currently constructing a 39m wide telescope for a little over a billion euros.

Please set aside a few billion over the next couple of years to construct a larger interferometric telescope array with a total collecting area sufficient to image the closest exoplanets in detail! The JWST will teach us a lot, but for an equivalent price, we could have a much more powerful telescope (or telescope array) on the ground.

[BorcishHorde]

Pretty sure what he means is that the habitable zone is a bit anthropocentric. There is a chance there is life on Titan, which means, essentially, there could be life on rogue planets without any star at all. Therefore, meaning the concept of a habitable zone at all is bunk.

[RaphaelCBlanco]

People has to learn how to understand that this experiments are fundamental to us. It's dream and reality in raw action ! I am so glad I have watched. People need to see this !

[SeanLynchXY]

Did you think about it before giving up?

[EthanNin]

Me too! I wish NASA had a bigger budget.

[TheAfarensis]

What are you seeing? To me, they look as ease as most scientists usually do. That is, maybe they're more used to doing rather than talking. *shrugs*

[lilrdthagreat]

There are no "pictures" of the planets, it works by detecting the distortion of its star as the planet passes.

[TouchedProductions]

Try Googling for "How are planets found?" They even explain it in this video around 8 minutes in. :) Good luck .