This spring, Director of the Carnegie Observatories Wendy Freedman spoke at the American Museum of Natural History’s Hayden Planetarium about astronomer Edwin Hubble’s discovery of the galaxies and the expansion of the universe, how astronomers measure vast distances, and how the Hubble Space Telescope is used to measure the size and age of the universe. Mike Shara, curator in the Department of Astrophysics, sat down with Freedman for an interview in the Hayden Planetarium to discuss the expansion of the universe, dark matter, and building the 25-meter telescope.
Astronomers associated with NASA’s Kepler observatory have announced the discovery of more than 1,200 new candidate exoplanets. Michael Shara, a curator in the Museum’s Department of Astrophysics, writes about the significance of the findings below.
Does life exist anywhere in the universe except on Earth? “Star Trek” may have convinced much of the public that the universe is teeming with technological civilizations, but the correct answer is: We don’t know for certain if life–even bacterial life — exists anywhere except on Earth. A critical challenge in answering this question is determining whether planets — especially Earth-like planets — orbit other stars.
The search for Earth-like planets has just taken a giant leap forward, thanks in part to the tireless work of the dozens of astronomers associated with NASA’s Kepler observatory. Their quest to find exoplanets — planets orbiting stars other than our Sun — has been a stunning success. It is now certain that planets are as common stars.
Fifteen years ago the University of California, Berkeley’s Geoff Marcy and a handful of colleagues began an almost quixotic quest for exoplanets. Dozens, and then hundreds of astronomers joined the quest after Geneva’s Michel Mayor, Marcy, and their colleagues began reporting the first discoveries. Herculean efforts led to the cataloguing of 500 exoplanets by the end of 2010. Now the Kepler team has announced the discovery of more than 1,200 new candidate exoplanets, and enough details about each of these new worlds to begin to draw far-reaching conclusions about abodes for life in the universe.
Even more remarkable is that 58 planetary candidates were found to be approximately Earth-sized and falling in a temperature range where water can be liquid on a planet’s surface.
“In one dramatic announcement, astronomers have just tripled the number of known planets in the universe,” Marcy said. “More impressive is that over half of them, 663, are smaller than four times the diameter of Earth. These numerous worlds of nearly- Earth size bode well for the prospects of finding habitable, Earth-like planets some day.
Only two million years ago, we Homo sapiens climbed down from the trees to traipse across the East African Savannah. Only about 100,000 years ago we ventured out of Africa, destined to explore the entire globe. Now we are reaching out to new worlds, actual new worlds, where we hope to learn if our home Earth is common or rare in the universe. Every child within us would love to know how commonly other planets spawn life, and how often that life evolves toward intelligent, communicative critters with the dexterity to build their own vessels of exploration. With Kepler’s discovery of hundreds of nearly Earth-sized worlds, we humans are taking our first steps toward finding our kindred spirits among the stars.”
Read the complete Kepler Mission findings by clicking here.
We recently sat down with Geoff Marcy at the 217th American Astronomical Society meeting in Seattle, Washington, and discussed exoplanets, their host stars and how the Kepler Mission is searching for Earth-like planets and signs of life in the universe. Watch below:
Authors Charles T. Bourland and Gregory L. Vogt will lead October’s Global Kitchen: The Astronaut’s Cookbook at the Museum on Wednesday, October 27. Bourland recently answered some questions about the upcoming discussion.
An astronaut enjoys a meal in space.
How has astronaut food evolved since the Apollo missions?
Astronaut food has evolved from the cubes and tubes of the Apollo days to almost normal food eaten with normal utensils. The food is “almost” normal because the packaging required for storage and consumption of food in microgravity is different than what we normally use on Earth. It was discovered during late Apollo that food can be eaten with normal utensils from open containers as long as the food is wet and thus has surface tension properties. Today’s Shuttle and International Space Station astronauts have a much greater variety of foods to choose from than the Apollo astronauts did.
What are the biggest challenges in preparing food for space?
The biggest challenges are to make palatable food that the astronauts will eat while complying with the rigorous spacecraft requirements. The closed environment of the spacecraft demands special safety precautions and limits the type of food and packaging that can be used.
How do you create a menu for a space mission? What goes into determining each meal?
Each individual astronaut now chooses his or her own menu, compared to the older missions where NASA planned the menu. NASA maintains an inventory of approved foods from which the astronauts make their choices. The astronauts sample all of the available foods and make their choices six months to a year before the mission launch date. After their choices are made, the NASA dietitian analyzes the menu to ensure it meets the NASA nutritional guidelines.
What’s a sample menu for a day in space?
Here are Days 2, 8, and 13 for Ken Ham, commander of STS-132, launched May 14, 2010. NASA uses Meal A, B, C instead of breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Read more »
Frederick P. Rose Director of the Hayden Planetarium Neil deGrasse Tyson recently appeared on NBC’s Nightly News with Brian Williams to discuss the newly-discovered Gliese 581g, an extrasolar planet in the just-right-for-liquid-water “Goldilocks zone” in relation to its star.
The new planet “offers us some glimmer of hope for a universe in which we’re not alone, but joined by other life forms–possibly even intelligent,” says Dr. Tyson in the clip.
You can hear more about this fascinating new discovery during this Sunday’s special Isaac Asimov Debate: Is Earth Unique? Hosted and moderated by Tyson, the debate will feature a panel of experts who will discuss whether extrasolar planets might have the unique conditions needed to support life. The debate is one of the many special activities planned for this weekend’s celebration of the 10-year anniversary of the Frederick Phineas & Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space.
The results are in! We asked you to show us in a video how science has inspired you. Congratulations to Luke, whose video “LHC” won him a weekend for two in New York City to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Frederick Phineas & Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space!
Luke’s prize-winning video explains the purpose and promise of the Large Hadron Collider with a mix of humor and awe. “Science is and always will be a journey of discovery, inquiry, and curiosity,” Luke says in the narration to his video. “We get to ask the universe fundamental questions about itself, and we can only hope that it answers back.”
Also now available on YouTube are the first runner-up, “Space is Awesome,” a charming account of a two-year-old’s love for astronomy, and the second runner-up, “Robots,” based on the news that researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have taught robots how to deceive.
Join us this Sunday to celebrate the Rose Center’s anniversary at a day-long event featuring live concerts and performances, hands-on activities, presentations by Museum scientists, and a special appearance by NASA astronaut Michael Massimino—all this and more, free with Museum admission.
Stay on into the evening for a special Asimov Debate: Is Earth Unique?, moderated by Frederick P. Rose Director of the Hayden Planetarium Neil deGrasse Tyson and a panel of experts who will consider whether other planets might have the unique conditions needed to support life. The discovery announced last week of Gliese 581 g, an extrasolar planet in the just-right-for-liquid-water “Goldilocks zone” in relation to its star, is sure to enliven the conversation, raise lots of questions, and maybe even inspire another video or two!
