Are we alone in the Universe? This is surely one of mankind’s
oldest questions. Over the centuries, explorers like Christopher Columbus and James
Cook discovered new shores and civilisations. Scientists today, in their quest for
knowledge and in their effort to understand Nature, also discover new territories,
but in outer space…
Ancient Greek scholars knew of the existence of Venus
and of Mercury just by looking up at the night sky. Today we know more about how
the Universe is organised and our knowledge of our solar system is very
precise, made of the Sun and eight planets. But our blue planet, the Earth, is
the only one to host life and moreover intelligent life. Scientists think they
are now able to explain why this life appeared and what is required to maintain
it.
In 1995, the first
exoplanet (one outside our solar system with similar characteristics to our own)
was discovered. Since then, thousands of exoplanets have been discovered,
including potentially “inhabitable” ones, thanks mostly to the Kepler space telescope sent
into space in 2009.
NASA created media frenzy
when it found Kepler452-b. This exoplanet is the same size as our Earth and its
star is the same type as our Sun, a first. However, lots of information remains to be confirmed before being able to declare it “Earth 2.0”...
Both NASA (USA) and
ESA (Europe) are working on new exoplanet seeker telescopes like TESS (for 2017)
and PLATO (for 2024) which will work with the Earth Observatory to get new
information like planet mass, atmosphere, and composition, which will help us
better determine whether a planet can host life or not.
Considering the
number of galaxies, and the number of solar systems in each galaxy, it is sure
that other intelligent life forms exist in the Universe, but where? When will
we find them? Are they advanced enough to communicate with us across distant space? Will we be advanced enough to understand their call, if
and when it comes?
We have already learnt
so many incredible things, but there are still so many marvellous discoveries
to be made!
Webography :
Plus:
Science et Vie Junior #310: Can we find better than
Earth?
Quentin wants to be an astronaut when he grows up!
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