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from the Darth-Vadar-doesn't-help-though dept.
"Some alien planets in multiple-star systems — such as the two-sun Tatooine, Luke's home world in the 'Star Wars' universe — may indeed nestle in orbits that are stable for long stretches of time, a new study suggests.
In the study, researchers ran more than 45,000 computer simulations, examining where planets of various masses and dimensions could exist in two- and three-star systems.
"We ran the simulations for periods ranging from 1 million to 10 million years, in order to see if the systems are stable over very long periods," study lead author Franco Busetti, of the School of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, said in a statement.
"The analysis shows that most configurations had large enough stable regions for planets to exist," added Busetti, who presented the results Monday (June 4) at the 232nd meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Denver. "Many of these areas are actually very habitable for planets."
Fewer than 40 three-star planets are known. But the new study, which has been submitted to the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics, could help astronomers find more, Busetti said.
"It could assist in selecting suitable candidates for a survey of such systems and guide the observational searches for them," he said. "The geometry of the stable zone indicates not only where to look for planets but how to look."
(Score: 2) by Rosco P. Coltrane on Thursday June 07 2018, @02:32PM (7 children)
We're not talking astronomy, we're talking evolution. Millions of years are conceivable plenty long enough for a species to evolve far enough to escape its home planet before it becomes uninhabitable.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday June 07 2018, @02:50PM (4 children)
Conceivable, sure. Likely? I don't really think so. Depending on which source you use, the oldest known hominid is somewhere between two and five million years. And, we still haven't settled our nearest neighbor in space.
Granted, other life forms in other systems may evolve a lot faster than we did, but, even so - I wouldn't put my money on it.
(Score: 2, Troll) by realDonaldTrump on Thursday June 07 2018, @05:34PM
Let me tell you, there's a great movie from the 70s, The Andromeda Strain. About a killer germ that came from outer space. Possibly from another planet. And it's a made up story. But it could happen!!!!
(Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Friday June 08 2018, @02:14AM (2 children)
We don't know what's likely or not, because we have only one example to go on which is us of course.
It could be that the 10,000 years or so that it has taken for us to go from inventing agriculture to the industrialised world we have now marks us out as particularly stupid and slow, and other intelligences do it in 2,000 years or less.
I guess there are lots of variables in there too, the Toba Bottleneck probably didn't help. [wikipedia.org]
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Friday June 08 2018, @02:37AM (1 child)
Only a mean old zombie would paraphrase my own words and shoot them back at me!
I'm just kidding about the "mean". Point taken. We can't possibly know what other intelligences may or may not have accomplished, unless, and until, we meet other intelligences. We could be the most retarded intelligence to ever evolve, or we may be the fastest developing - or anywhere in between. And, we can't know.
(Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Friday June 08 2018, @03:05AM
It's a fun discussion though. The possibilites are endless, which is why I have been reading Science fiction for ~40 years.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Thursday June 07 2018, @03:39PM
I would be interested (genuinely) in how Evolution could explain a species escaping their planet as it becomes uninhabitable.
A random mutation, or simply the genetic diversity that occurs in species that use sexual reproduction, could be responsible for one member of the species becoming suddenly able to escape the planet and safely fly themselves to a habitable planet.
Then, I suppose natural selection and fitness would select those who survive based on those who find themselves, by virtue of birth, among the ones able to transport themselves to another habitable planet that is in desperate need of being polluted.
But I don't think it works that way. I think moving oneself to another habitable planet is too big a leap for some members to happen to naturally be born capable of space travel. Unless the species is already close to that, and then some members are capable enough of it to select themselves for survival on the new world.
More likely is that space travel is the result of intelligence and technological development. Survival means you have the money or a skill or talent that is in sufficient demand.
To transfer files: right-click on file, pick Copy. Unplug mouse, plug mouse into other computer. Right-click, paste.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by FatPhil on Thursday June 07 2018, @05:40PM
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves