John North Editor & Publisher

Shades of ìStar Trekî ó† I recently read where the most Earthlike planet outside our solar system has been discovered in the contellation Libra ó and itís only 20 light years away.

And get this: The newly discovered planet, which was identified by the wobble its orbit causes in the motion of its home star Gliese 581, is aptly named Gliese 581c. (Makes me wonder about its cousins ìaî and ìb.î)

Of course, realtors will be thrilled to learn that the newly discovered planet is ìthe most enticing property yet found outside our solar system,î according to a recent story by Dennis Overbye in The New York Times. Headlined ìNew planet could be Earthlike, scientists say,î the story cited the discovery by a team of European astronomers on April 24.

Before accelerating the Starship Enterprise to warp factor 10 for the trip, though, one may want to consider that this newly discovered planet is five times as massive as the Earth and orbits a dim red star. Thus, the days might be a drag with the never-ending red tint ó but imagine the glorious crimson sunsets!

Despite its large size relative to the earth, the planet is the smallest of the 200 or so that are known to exist outside of our solar system. ìIt orbits its home star within the so-called habitable zone where surface water, the staff of life, could exist if other conditions are right,î Stephane Udry of the Geneva Observatory told the Times.

However, Udry, the lead author of the paper describing the discovery, and other astronomers cautioned that it is far too soon to conclude that liquid water is there without more observations.

Still, at least some astronomers agree that the discovery catapults the Gliese 581 system to the top of the list for future generations of space missions.

ìOn the treasure map of the universe, one would be tempted to mark this planet with an X,î Xavier Delfosse, a member of the team from Grenoble University in France, said. (Of course, with a first name like Xavier, he probably says that a lot.)

However, my favorite comment from the Times story was from Dimitar Sassalov of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, who said, ìItís 20 light years. We can go there!î

Alas, scientists lack much information about the new planet and, as the Times story points out, the best chance for learning more lies with the Terrestrial Planet Finder, a NASA mission, and the Darwin missions of the European Space Agency, which are designed to study Earthlike planets, but have been delayed by technical and financial difficulties.

Ultimately, the discovery of Gliese 581c raises many possibilities. For instance, if life is discovered there, it could give new meaning to baseballís World Series.
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John North, publisher and editor of the Daily Planet, may be contacted at publisher-at-ashevilledailyplanet.com