distant planets

We may never see the surface of a planet in another solar system, but that doesn’t mean we can’t imagine it with great accuracy. Equipped with careful observations, it’s possible to visualize the sunset as it would look from a distant exoplanet. This is what it looks like.

Two more little Earth-sized planets have been discovered orbiting a distant star, astronomers said Wednesday, and their bizarre baked death may foreshadow the destiny of our own solar system. The publication comes a day after the announcement of the first Earth-sized planets ever confirmed outside our solar system. Already firmly in the exoplanet age, we’re apparently entering an era of exo-Earths, full of small worlds with a past and a future very much like our own.

Scientists think they have seen a baby planet swirling to life around a very young sun-like star, about 350 light years from Earth in the southern constellation Chameleon. If they can confirm their discovery, it would be the earliest picture yet of a natal planetary system, further illuminating how planets are born.

Robots that traverse desert race courses or explore distant planets are undoubtedly cool, but ultimately were all hoping that engineers dont lose sight of the real goal for such capable machines. We want them to do the stuff we dont want to do. For instance, vacuum and scrub our floors. Now, though, scientists at Denmarks Aarhus University are designing a robot to carry out one of the most mundane and annoying outdoor tasks: weeding. The group is modifying an existing lawn-mowing robot, the controversial Spider, so that it can use simple mechanical weeding tools, and even lasers for frying the pesky growths. The new robot, called the Hortibot, would still need someone to operate it, but would be capable of doing the work of ten people. It could also be equipped with micro-sprayers that would drastically cut the amount of chemicals applied to kill the weeds, reducing the potential for environmental damage. Dont go putting one on your birthday list, though. The current price has been reported to be somewhere between $55,000 and $71,000.—Gregory Mone

Via Yahoo News

(Image Credit: Aarhus University)