Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Tatooine-like Planet Discovered

Posted by CowboyNeal on from the mos-eisley-not-included dept.

ATP writes "CNN is reporting that a planet has been discovered in a solar system with 3 suns. The observation brings into doubt the theory stating that planets form from the dust orbiting around a single sun. The discovery also resulted in a new method of searching for extrasolar planets-- until now most searching focused only on single-sun systems."

5 of 403 comments (clear)

  1. Pitch Black by mesach · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Might it be more like the planet in Pitch Black instead of Tattoine?

    --
    moo.
  2. The effects of 3 suns by Infonaut · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Imagine if such a planet were habitable (that is, a planet with three suns). Think about how much of our human existence is dictated by the cycles of our single sun. I wonder how different things would be with three suns.

    Would agriculture ever start? Would dwellings all be subterranean? Would concepts of work and play be utterly different? Religions would evolve differently. Would gender roles be affected?

    Does anyone know of a work of science fiction that delves into this, in the way that The Left Hand of Darkness explored gender issues?

    --
    Read the EFF's Fair Use FAQ
    1. Re:The effects of 3 suns by bc90021 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Actually, for as much of our culture that's dictated by the sun, a *lot* of it is dictated by the moon. Our calender is based first on the moon (months, a word that may have derived from moonths?), women's cycles are typically ~28 days (the length of the lunar cycle), tides are more heavily influenced by the moon than the sun, and a number of other things I can't think of right now. I'm not denying the sun's influence by any means - obviously, without it's warmth and light there'd be just about nothing on this planet. But don't understimate the moon, which is as important, if not moreso.

      --
      libertarianswag.com
  3. Tatooine? by vanyel · · Score: 4, Insightful

    To me, Tatooine-like would be "that earthish desert planet", not "that gas giant with 3 suns"...

  4. False Advertising by aykroyd · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "Tatooine-like Planet Discovered," I read. Eagerly, I clicked the link. "They've found a way to tell just what the planet is like! Now that is news!"

    Oh, but wait... It's actually a story about a planet that was discovered in a solar system with three stars. What in the hell does that have to do with making the planet "Tatooine-like"? That's like calling every other planet in our system "Earth-like".

    *sigh*