Space Is So Awesome :)

Space is so awesome :)

Gliese 832c: The closest potentially habitable exoplanet

This planet is only 16 light years away — could it harbor life? Recently discovered exoplanet Gliese 832c has been found in a close orbit around a star that is less bright than our Sun. An interesting coincidence, however, is that Gliese 832c receives just about the same average flux from its parent star as does the Earth. Since the planet was discovered only by a slight wobble in its parent star’s motion, the above illustration is just an artistic guess of the planet’s appearance — much remains unknown about Gliese 832c’s true mass, size, and atmosphere. If Gliese 832c has an atmosphere like Earth, it may be a super-Earth undergoing strong seasons but capable of supporting life. Alternatively, if Gliese 832c has a thick atmosphere like Venus, it may be a super-Venus and so unlikely to support life as we know it. The close 16-light year distance makes the Gliese 832 planetary system currently the nearest to Earth that could potentially support life. The proximity of the Gliese 832 system therefore lends itself to more detailed future examination and, in the most spectacularly optimistic scenario, actual communication — were intelligent life found there.

Image credit & copyright: The Planetary Habitability Laboratory @ UPR Arecibo; Discovery: Robert A. Wittenmyer (UNSW Australia) et al.

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On this day in 1972, Apollo 17 landed on the moon. No human has been back in 42 years. At 2:55pm EST on December 11th, 1972, soon after undocking from Ron Evans and the command module, Harrison Schmitt and Eugene Cernan safely landed on the lunar surface. Apollo 17, as it turns out, represents the last time human beings have not only ventured to the Moon, but have left the confines of low-Earth Orbit.

Schmitt and Cerman clocked in more hours (22 hours, 3 minutes, 57 seconds) exploring the moon than any other previous mission, and traveled more than 22 miles. Apollo 17 consisted of three EVAs, and the Taurus-Littrow landing site provided nearly 244 pounds of moon rocks and other lunar samples to be analyzed upon returning home. Eugene Cernan, the commander of Apollo 17, spent the last moments of the transcendent Apollo program alone on the Moon’s surface, and while he climbed the ladder and took one final look back, he expressed his thoughts: "…I’m on the surface; and, as I take man’s last step from the surface, back home for some time to come - but we believe not too long into the future - I’d like to just [say] what I believe history will record. That America’s challenge of today has forged man’s destiny of tomorrow. And, as we leave the Moon at Taurus-Littrow, we leave as we came and, God willing, as we shall return, with peace and hope for all mankind. "Godspeed the crew of Apollo 17." If you feel that it has been far too long since we humans have set foot on our nearest celestial neighbor, you should contact your elected officials and express your desire for us to go back. www.penny4nasa.org/take-action

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techstarz

10 years ago

I have been a cat owner my whole life and I literally never knew that tiger lilies and stargazers were also highly toxic to cats. Even drinking the water from the vase that lilies are in can kill the cat! I brought in a tiger lily from our yard today and just thought to look it up and found out (and of course removed the lily from our house as soon as I saw). How scary!

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techstarz

7 years ago

Nice Honey necktie. I think 4K from @tjpones would approve.