First Reflected Light From an Exoplanet Seen
Roland Piquepaille writes "European astronomers have for the first time ever been able to detect and monitor the visible light that is scattered in the atmosphere of an exoplanet. Designated HD 189733b, also known as a 'hot Jupiter,' orbits a star slightly cooler and less massive than the Sun about 60 light-years from Earth. According to a Zurich news release, 'Polarization technique focuses limelight,' the researchers used 'techniques similar to how Polaroid sunglasses filter away reflected sunlight to reduce glare. They also directly traced the orbit of the planet, a feat of visualization not possible using indirect methods.' The team thinks that their findings are opening new opportunities for exploring physical conditions on exoplanets."
Designated HD 189733b, also known as a 'hot Jupiter,'
I've given my girlfriend a "hot Jupiter" before, but I didn't know it had an official scientific serial number.
The theory of relativity doesn't work right in Arkansas.
If only there were some sort of multi-media-enabled information sharing platform available so that everyone could see the visualizations for themselves. Oh well.
"Tell me doctor, with all of your defenses, are there any provisions for an attack by killer bees?"
Goatse never gets old apparently.
"...the researchers used 'techniques similar to how Polaroid sunglasses filter away reflected sunlight to reduce glare..." Funny, I didn't even know Polaroid made sunglasses, here I thought they only made photography stuff. I assume the writer meant Polarized sunglasses?
Why lie when you can just make up stuff and claim it to be true?
Steve Jobs sued the exoplanet for patent infringement, citing its ability to focus the limelight on anything other than him.
Other than this text, there is no discernible information contained in this sig.
Frak, you'd think I'd have learned to read links by now..
*smacks forehead*
...we are not alone then, after all?
Move along now, nothing to see here! Go on!
next release of oakley sunglasses will have built in planet spotting capabilities.. wheee
Dear scientists, thank you for finding me.
XO -planet
I just RTFA and all that's there is an "artist's rendition".
Where the hell is the real picture?
I call BS.
Fresh out of Mod points, mod up someone The naming is awkward, I believe the term "polarized" is more correct when refering to these kind of glasses, Polaroid leads to confusion.
I believe the term "polarized" is more correct when refering to these kind of glasses, Polaroid leads to confusion
The glasses aren‘t polarized, they are polarizing. AFAIK, the only thing one can polarize are waves
I'm not, but you probably are.
It's got a wiki page as well. It's listed as only 15% more Massive than Jupiter.
"Hot Jupiters (also called roasters, epistellar jovians, pegasids or pegasean planets) are a class of extrasolar planets whose mass is close to or exceeds that of Jupiter"
I figured Hot Jubiter implied "hotter than" but I guess that's not the case.
"That's no planet."
1. a. A synthetic material which in the form of thin sheets produces a high degree of plane polarization in light passing through it.
- 1936 Lancaster (Ohio) Gaz. 31 Jan. 1 The inventor, Edwin H. Land, 27, spent 10 years in perfecting the glass which he calls 'polaroid', because it polarizes light.
- 1946 F. SCHNEIDER Qualitative Org. Microanal. iv. 119 The sections of Polaroid are cut so that their planes of polarization include an angle of approximately 5 when the segments are mounted.
b. A piece of this material, esp. one used as a polarizer or analyser.- 1937 Hammond (Indiana) Times 2 July 21/6 When this light is forced to pass through a second polaroid..the light is broken up into beautiful colors.
- 1967 H. VON KLÜBER in J. N. Xanthakis Solar Physics ix. 261 For nearly all analysers used in the detection of such inverse Zeeman effects{em}such as polaroids, double-splitting crystals, quarter- or half-wave plates, etc.{em}the result..is just the same.
- 1976 Nature 11 Mar. 155/1 The relative intensities of the red and green components could then be varied by rotating a Polaroid interposed in the common beam.
2. In pl. Sunglasses with Polaroid lenses. [...]3. a. A photograph taken with a Polaroid camera. [...]
b. A camera of this kind. [...]
I can't believe no one has done the Svetlana and Hot Jupiter angle... /. is it not??
This is
I can't believe someone modded this as informative. Further proof that the mods don't read the comments.
Moderation is a lot like democracy: it only works the way it's supposed to if people pay attention. Obviously, someone was asleep at the wheel, here.
And political news coverage.
It's just like I said in my reply to the goatse troll: people don't read what they mod. Some idiot didn't take the time to read this post, and modded it down, despite the fact that it was warning someone of a link to goatse that doesn't say goaste in the visable url. Good job, moron.
Attention whomever did the modding I speak of: You are stupid.
If an exoplanet can be directly imaged in this manner, does that mean some of the techniques used on stars for inferring the existence of exoplanets (wobbling, dimming etc) can be used to detect exomoons?
This would be a great breakthrough if it were possible, seeing as most of the exoplanets we know about are gas giants and if they host life it is likely to be on their moons.
If we can put a man on the moon, why can't we shoot people for Apollo-related non-sequiturs?
As horrifying as it is, it doesn't piss me off like that fohootville crap.
The cost of that cleanup, of course, will be borne by taxpayers, not industry.
I larfed twice, first I thought goatse, almost fell out of my chair. Then when I saw the imaging comment from AC, (good one, eh?) and LOL all over again. Now the ol' lady is yelling I woke her up.
The cost of that cleanup, of course, will be borne by taxpayers, not industry.
Ignorant is insightful, wrong is informative. Google is not your friend. Google has never been your friend..
1/3 of jokes get modded OT. If you get the joke, mod 1 in 3 insightful/interesting/underrated to restore karma balance.
I had a box of epistellar jovians in my stocking this year.
"The irony when tending a flock of sheep is the dogs you put in place to protect them are genetically mutated wolves"
*sigh* pang of nostalgia, reminds me of MOO, now we can send colony ships instead of scout ships.
Um...so you've never made a magnet in chemistry class? You can even polarize water... (or at least polarize the ions within water...)
If the author of this article doesn't know the difference between polarized lenses and Polaroid brand film, then what does that say about the trustworthyness of the article?