Aliens?

ALIENS???

Aliens? Perhaps there are aliens in the solar system. Perhaps there are other worlds in space. "It's got the same climate as Earth, plus water and gravity. A newly discovered planet is the most stunning evidence that life - just like us - might be out there." With climate change on the loose, the world is under captivity. Scientists, with newly invented technology, have researched earth-like planets in the solar systems and further galaxies beyond our own. This newly discovered planet is the first exoplanet (a planet orbiting a star other than our own Sun) that is anything like our Earth. Of the 220 or so exoplanets found to date, most have either been too big, made of gas rather than solid material, far too hot, or far too cold for life to survive.

"On the treasure map of the Universe, one would be tempted to mark this planet with an X," says Xavier Delfosse, one of the scientists who discovered the planet. "Because of its temperature and relative proximity, this planet will most probably be a very important target of the future space missions dedicated to the search for extraterrestrial life." It has a mass five times that of Earth, probably made of the same sort of rock as makes up our world and with enough gravity to hold an atmosphere just like ours. The Goldilocks Zone is a climate zone where it is not so cold that water freezes and not so hot that it boils, but where it can lie on the planet's surface as a liquid. In our solar system, only one planet - Earth - lies in the Goldilocks Zone. This new planet lies right in the middle of the zone, with average surface temperatures estimated to be between zero and 40°C, meaning that lakes, rivers and even oceans are possible.



The planet itself is very similar to Earth, however, the solar sytem to which it belongs is as alien as could be imagined. The star at the centre (Gliese 581) is small and dim, only a third of the size of our sun and about 50 times cooler. This planet is called Gliese 581c and it's 12000 miles wide.



But are these alien like Earths home? No one knows. There may very well be a chance that these planets are infiltrated with bacteria and bugs. Of course, there might not be anything. However, the real importance of all this is not of this significant planet alone, but the possibility that there's loads of earth-like planets in the atmosphere for the scientists to research. There are 200 billion stars in the universe and scientists believe that a few planets will orbit these stars. Dr Malcolm Fridlund, a European Space Agency scientist, said the discovery of Gliese 581c was "an important step" on the road to finding life. The other planets that orbit around Gliese 581a are huge - they are known as Gliese 581b and Gliese 581c. These earth like planets orbit the Sun at a distance of only six million miles or so, these planets travel so fast that its "year" only lasts 13 of our days. Hopefully, using advanced technology such as the herschel telescope, it might be easier to speculate the surroundings and background of this planet. However, right now, it is difficult to predict whether there is any life of it. If there is life there it would have to cope with the higher gravity and solar radiation from its sun. Gliese 581c is so close to Earth that if they have enhanced technology, they could pick up a few radar signals from us, such as powerful military machines. If we could possibly collect more information about its surroundings and the possibility that it has oxygen/methane, it is quite possible that there is chance of survival similar to ours right now. If Gliese 581c is habitable, that does mean that its inhabited. Scientists have proven that the Sun is a billion years old. If there is any chance of life, then it was had many years to evolve. This new planet is unnamed and is 20.5 light years away. It orbits a star called Gliese 581. So far since 2007, scientists have discovered more radar signals. However, this new planet remains to exist as a new hope for any life in the stars.

By Megan Liu and Evelyn Levers 9AR