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Galaxy is rich in small, Earth-like planets

Michael SallaHonolulu Exopolitics Examiner

Kepler Space Telescope. Photo; NASA

Video has recently emerged of a speech by ProfessorDimitar Sasselov, Harvard

astronomer and co-investigator of NASA's Kepler Space Telescope, where he declaredthat the "Galaxy is rich in small, Earth-like planets." His speech was given at a

Technology Entertainment and Design conference at Oxford University in mid-July

where speakers are limited to 18 minutes on the latest scientific trends. The Keplertelescope uncovered evidence of up to 140 different planets similar in size to the Earth.Sasselov believes that the discovery amounts to a Copernican revolution where a clear

affirmative answer is given to the question: Are there other Earth like planets out there

that can harbor life? Significantly, Sasselov asserts that the evidence points to moreearth-like planets in the galaxy than gas giants as previously thought. Estimates of earth-

like planets in the galaxy could be quickly revised up to 100 million or more. Most

importantly, he says that the data allows scientists to scan exoplanets for tell tale signs oflife. Sasselovs findings is good news for researchers in the fields of astrobiology and

exopolitics since it encourages more scientific inquiry into the implications of intelligent

extraterrestrial life.

Sasselovs speech was quickly featured in the international media with bold headlinessuch as Britains Daily Mailthat More than 100 'Earth-like' planets discovered in past

few weeks." Not so fast according to Space.com.

What Dimitar presented was 'candidates,'" said David Koch, the mission's deputy

principal investigator at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif."These have the apparent signature we are looking for, but then we must perform

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extensive follow-up observations to eliminate false positives, such as background

eclipsing binaries. This requires substantial amounts of ground-based observing

which is done primarily in the summer observing season."

Indeed, Sasselov confirmed that more work was to be done over the summer to confirm

what the Kepler data was suggesting, and that more newswas to come later in the year!"

That did not however stop Sasselov commenting on the significance of what has been

discovered so far. He said that smaller rocky Earth like planets were statistically morecommon than gas giants: "Even before we have confirmed the planets among these

hundreds of candidates, we can see statistically that the smaller-sized planets will be

more common than the large-sized (Jupiter- and Saturn-like ones) in the sample,"

Sasselov explained that the results so far of the Kepler mission heralded a Corpernicanrevolution. Just as Corpernicus revolutionized astronomy by publishing data that the solar

system rotated around the sun, rather than the earth, so too the data from the Kepler

mission would lead to another scientific revolution. Rather than planets like earth beingunique or an uncommon occurrence in the galaxy, they in fact are plentiful. Sasselov

declared in his speech that the Galaxy is rich in small, Earth-like planets

While more scientific investigation will occur in the months ahead to confirm the results

of the Kepler mission so far, its implications are enormous. Astrobiologists will be able toconclude with great confidence that extraterrestrial life is certain to exist elsewhere in the

galaxy. Importantly, for the field of exopolitics, intelligent extraterrestrial life will also be

deemed certain to exist, and this has profound social and political implications for

humanity. In April 2010, Prof Stephen Hawking claimed it was perfectly rational todiscuss the motivations of advanced extraterrestrial life. The findings of the Kepler

mission make inquiry into the possible motivations of intelligent extraterrestrial life notonly perfectly rational" but now a logical necessity. The Kepler space telescope resultswill not only bring about an astronomical revolution, but a revolution in social and

political thought about technologically advanced intelligent life in the galaxy and its

impact on humanity.

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