Hidden Planets in Our Galaxy: 18 Terrestrial Planets Discovered

Hidden Planets in Our Galaxy: 18 Terrestrial Planets Discovered

 
This diagram shows the newly discovered exoplanets compared to the Earth and Neptune. (Photo Credit: NASA/JPL (Neptune) NASA/SOAA/GSFC/Suomi NPP/ Norman Kuring (Earth), MPS/Rene Heller)

Using the Kepler Telescope, Scientists have collected data on 18 exoplanets. Most of the planets discovered orbit close to their parent star and have varying surface temperatures that exceed more than 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit (1000 Degrees Celsius). One planet in particular orbits a red dwarf star in the area scientists dubbed "the habitable zone". The habitable zone is the area in which a planet could host liquid water on its surface, as it orbits its parent star but this does not mean that life could flourish on this planet. This world would be particularly difficult for life to develop on due to the fact that red dwarfs emit strong x-rays that make it hard for even the hardiest of microbes to develop.

K2 is the computer  program developed by scientists where Kepler space telescope uses solar winds to stabilize the telescope's pointing in a direction, examining a field of view for months. Using this method, Kepler has examined more than 100,000 stars, including 517 stars with planets orbiting them. Among the planets discovered using this method was the famous TRAPPIST-1 system (CLICK HERE: to read more about TRAPPIST-1). Researchers decided to look at the data gathered with this method using a new data processing algorithm.

Rene Heller, an astrophysicist at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research stated "In reality, however, a stellar disk appears slightly darker at the edge than in the center. When a planet moves in front of a star, it therefore initially blocks less starlight than at the mid-time if the transit. The maximum dimming of the star occurs in the center of the transit just before the star becomes gradually brighter again."



Kepler data identifies the exoplanets by spotting small dips in brightness caused when a planet passes between a star and the telescope. Scientists are developing new algorithms to try and uncover more planets within the data.
(Image: NASA/SDO (Sun), MPS/Rene Heller)

The reason why this new algorithm was created was to try and create a more realistic dimming pattern as a planet transits across the face of a star. Using this new algorithm it became easier to detect smaller planets. The new planets discovered range from just slightly smaller than the Earth to nearly double the size of the Earth. The new algorithm even makes it easier for scientists to discover planets when fluctuations of light from a star is altered by sunspots.

If we continue to use this algorithm and discover newer ways to interpret the Kepler data, more planets could be out there, waiting to be discovered. Who knows, some may even harbor life.

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What Would Happen if the Earth Stopped Spinning?

What Would Happen if the Earth Stopped Spinning?

So I was sitting around and I got to thinking about why the Earth spins. I eventually came to the question, what would happen if the Earth stopped spinning (definitely not likely).

If the Earth suddenly stopped spinning that would be a very bad day, everything would go flying in the direction of that the Earth was spinning. At the Equator, the Earth is spinning at over 1000 mph (1600 kph) from West to East.

Simply put, if the Earth suddenly stopped rotating everything would simultaneously be thrown in a direction west to east until friction slowed you down. Most people assume that we would fly off of the Earth's surface into outer space. That is not the case. It would take speeds in excess of 17,600 MPH (28,324 kph) to do so. The atmosphere is also turning at 465 m/s at the same time so if the Earth were to stop spinning, it would set off storms on a global scale. The closer you are to the poles the less you would feel the effects. If you could stand at the North Pole, you would not even notice what’s going on (not like anyone would want to be standing at the North Pole for any reason).

The Earth is orbiting around the Sun, the Sun being at a fixed point at the center of our solar system. If the Earth stopped rotating, days and nights would be determined by the location of the Earth on it's orbit around the Sun. Since we are no longer rotating, as the Earth orbits around the Sun, the light will hit it at different angles creating our days and nights (Days being 6 months and nights being 6 months). So in a year that is supposed to be 365 days, we would only experience 1 long day and 1 long night.

The Earth's spin creates a bulge at the equator which makes the oceans bulge out by 8 Km. If the Earth was to stop spinning the bulge at the equator would disappear as the Earth becomes a perfect sphere due to the forces of gravity. The oceans would redistribute over time to the north and south poles, causing mass flooding of the plane and leaving a single ring of land in the middle of the planet. 

These are just a few events that could happen if the Earth stopped spinning. What do you think could happen? Comment before you do your own research so you can see how much you already know! 

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