[Blitzerland]

Originally posted by Rictor
huh? I'm always like this, and besides: saar-chasm.
 

I like it too, but a lot of people do not, so I won't do it again.
By the way, we have no budget for a fleet

[aldo_14]

Originally posted by Tiara
That planet is actually VERY small. If that sun is actually what I think it is, a white dwarf, then the red planet orbiting it is about 1/5th the size of the US as a white dwarf is +/- the size of the US (in equatorial diameter).

That planet would roughly equal about 1.5x Pluto in size.

The star, called 2M1207, is 230 light-years away and is very much smaller and fainter than our own Sun.

SNIP

These observations will take a year or so. In the meantime, the astronomers are referring to the object as a "giant planet candidate companion".

SNIP

The researchers say the spectrum obtained is probably that of a "young and hot planet" that will cool down to become a gas-giant world like Jupiter.

If we can see it from here...it's not likely to be very small in celestial terms.

[Tiara]

Originally posted by aldo_14


The star, called 2M1207, is 230 light-years away and is very much smaller and fainter than our own Sun.

SNIP

These observations will take a year or so. In the meantime, the astronomers are referring to the object as a "giant planet candidate companion".

SNIP

The researchers say the spectrum obtained is probably that of a "young and hot planet" that will cool down to become a gas-giant world like Jupiter.

If we can see it from here...it's not likely to be very small in celestial terms.

Size doesn't really matter if the reflection of light is strong enough. After all, all we're seeing are rays of light.

Besides, in a sense, the picture we're looking at is over 230 years old

[Blitzerland]

Originally posted by Tiara

Size doesn't really matter if the reflection of light is strong enough. After all, all we're seeing are rays of light.

Besides, in a sense, the picture we're looking at is over 230 years old

Very true. Hey, the Big Dipper could be gone and we wouldn't know about it.

[Ghostavo]

Originally posted by Tiara
That planet is actually VERY small. If that sun is actually what I think it is, a white dwarf, then the red planet orbiting it is about 1/5th the size of the US as a white dwarf is +/- the size of the US (in equatorial diameter).

That planet would roughly equal about 1.5x Pluto in size.

http://www.sc.eso.org/~gchauvin/Gg222.pdf



About twice the distance between the sun and neptune!

The researchers say the spectrum obtained is probably that of a "young and hot planet" that will cool down to become a gas-giant world like Jupiter.

http://www.eso.org/outreach/press-rel/pr-2004/pr-23-04.html

model calculations point to a 5 jupiter-mass planet in orbit around 2M1207

If your still insist this is a small object, you have either got to be refering to a neutron star or a black hole.

[Tiara]

Ok, now I'm confused... Which one was the planet and which one was the star

[Ghostavo]

The star is the big bright one

EDIT:

Oh and

[Flipside]

I don't know whats funnier, the general confusion or Tiara saying Size isn't important

[Tiara]

Size isn't, girth is.

Think about that one for a while

[Carl]

there is no way it's small. of the 120 or so non-solar system planets we've found in the last decade, all of them have been at least a dozen times more massive than earth, partially because anything smaller would be un detectable.

[Shrike]

Originally posted by Tiara
Size isn't, girth is.

Think about that one for a while

Indeed.  If you're too fat you can't fit through doors.

[Black Wolf]

Originally posted by Carl
there is no way it's small. of the 120 or so non-solar system planets we've found in the last decade, all of them have been at least a dozen times more massive than earth, partially because anything smaller would be un detectable.

True, though that's largely because until now they've not been able to get them visually IIRC, but found em through analysis of the motion of the star and stuff. Presumably we'd be able to physically see stuff somewhat smaller than this if it was closer, but it's hard to know where to look.