Just to second Bruno, if anyone does find out any info, please post it here or email me directly: admin -at- seti.org.uk

Thanks!!!



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How do astronomers detect extrasolar planets?

The first planets to be found around nearby stars have never been seen. Instead, astronomers have discovered them indirectly, inferring the existence of an unseen companion through its effects on the star itself. So far, astronomers have only turned up huge planets that probably don't harbor life. However, future missions such as Terrestrial Planet Finder and its precursors will search for direct evidence of new planets as small as Earth.

4 Ways to Find a Planet, interactive Flash presentation
Multiple methods help track elusive quarry, HTML version

Getting the big picture: Multiple telescopes, one target
(PLANET QUEST) -- Engines roaring, the Navy's Blue Angels thrill audiences as they soar overhead in a tight triangle, their signature Delta formation. For a few moments, the six perfectly spaced jets appear to be invisibly joined together in a single unit. NASA's goal is to take the concept of formation flying to an even higher level. It is developing the technology to fly multiple spacecraft in such perfect harmony that they become a single instrument-bigger and better than could be launched ready-made from Earth. Formation flying is a critical element in NASA's search for Earthlike planets. Terrestrial Planet Finder, NASA's first space-based mission to directly observe planets outside our own solar system, will rely on formation flying for one of its two observatories. Five separate spacecraft will work together to function as a single huge telescope. They will create an instrument powerful enough to distinguish the faint light of small Earthlike planets from the much brighter light of the stars they orbit...

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me@rescam.org

> :)
> Probably a greater chance for PlanetQuest to find something than Seti.

Very true. I've already expressed my skepticism as to whether SETI will be successful (see my profile). I do SETI (and climate predictor) because I believe in trying anyway (so many people don't get the yin-yang of having both optimism and skepticism), especially since I have the resources on-hand. These people who are looking to invest in more hardware, however, deserve to know the odds of success. Doesn't mean they shouldn't try if they have the means and interest (heck, I'd probably do it if I had a place I could set up a telescope, but alas I rent).

From Cornell University

Is it worthwhile to continue the search for extraterrestrial life?

My personal opinion is that yes, it is worthwhile to continue the search for extraterrestrial life, but there are many arguments both for and against this search.

Many argue that since the probability of finding evidence of intelligent life is so small, it is a waste of money to continue scanning the sky in search of extraterrestrial intelligence. However, supporters of SETI and other programs note that the amount of taxpayer money that goes into these programs is less than one military helicopter per year.

Several estimates exist as far as just how unlikely it is that we will receive a signal from extraterrestrial life. One of these uses the Drake Equation, which estimates the number of technological civilizations in the galaxy. This equation takes into account the number of stars in the galaxy, fraction of those stars having planets, fraction of those planets which are habitable, fraction of those habitable planets on which life originates, fraction of that life which evolves to become intelligent, fraction of those intelligent civilizations which develop techonology, and the chance that these technological civilizations are alive at the same time as us. Using generous estimates for the factors in the Drake equation, there are about a million civilizations in the galaxy, which puts the nearest one at about 150 light-years away.

It seems that searching for intelligent life is a discouraging task, due to the huge distances involved and the fact that we may never find anything at all. However, the arguments against continuing SETI and other programs fade in my mind when I think about just how exciting it would be if we could get in touch with another civilization who may be asking themselves the same questions we ask ourselves, or may have some answers. Some people are afraid of what SETI may find, imagining malevolent aliens who may come and eat us all up, and others, like me, are excited by the idea, but I believe it is worth it to keep on looking, if for no other reason than the other discoveries that go along with it. The search for extraterrestrial life is one of the big motivations for further study of the rest of our solar system, especially Mars and the satellites of Jupiter and Saturn. Also, listening to the radio signals that arrive here from the rest of the universe has resulted in several important discoveries that may not have occurred if we were not listening for other life.

For more information on current programs looking for extraterrestrial life, have a look at the SETI institute and The Planetary Society's SETI page.

February 2003, Cathy Jordan

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me@rescam.org

Floating robots set stage for cosmic choreography
(PLANET QUEST) -- Under a velvet black dome studded with sparkling stars, a lone figure glides gracefully, tilting and whirling across a shining floor. Instead of music, however, there's the slight hiss of compressed air. Standing about waist high and weighing a chunky 318 kilograms (700 pounds), the rotund robot looks more like something from "Star Wars" than "Shall We Dance?" Yet, as it floats on a paper-thin cushion of air, it is testing the initial moves in a complex choreography that researchers eventually plan to execute in space as part of the search for Earthlike planets.The blue robot is a ground-based predecessor to NASA's Terrestrial Planet Finder, a revolutionary space telescope that will combine the light from multiple satellites to simulate one enormous telescope. When the mission launches, sometime before 2020, five robotic spacecraft will fly in formation to create an instrument powerful enough to capture the faint light from small planets orbiting stars outside our solar system. These are the kind of planets that scientists think have the most potential for harboring life...
Formation Flight Overview - (MOVIE)

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me@rescam.org

> Well I can't find any more info about this project. The people at PlanetQuest
> don't seem to know and I can't get a response from the Planetary Society. It
> sounds like the PS is dealing in BS.
>

http://www.planetary.org/audio/pr20041206.html
in this mp3 , d. anderson talk about planetquest and an hypothetic orbit@home project . i haven't everything understood ( i'm french ) . planetquest seems to be a futur BOINC based project :)

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PlanetQuest@home and Orbit@home...

Listen from timestamp 15:00 aprox:
MP3 format -OR- WMP format

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me@rescam.org

Hi,

Searching in google orbit@home I found this:
"Hi,

We are working on a Distributed Computing System, based on BOINC and
ORSA, that will monitor Near Earth Objects for possible impacts with the
Earth. A poster that describes the project is available here:

Project

At this moment the poster is the only available description of the
project, and there's not a public website yet. Probably we will start a
public beta the next spring. The project will probably be called
"orbit@home". Comments and suggestions are welcome.

Thanks,
Pasquale Tricarico
Washington State University"

If you go to "http://orsa.sourceforge.net/atwork.html" you can read:

"Distributed Computing and Near Earth Objects Hazard Monitoring Nov 14 2004

A Distributed Computing system is under development, based on the ORSA framework and on the BOINC platform. The basic idea is that the computations needed to monitor the impact hazard posed by Near Earth Objects can be distributed over a big number of clients. ORSA provides the numerical library needed to propagate the orbit of the NEOs, while BOINC provides the system to distribute work units, collect the results and perform many other tasks.
This poster [PDF, A0 paper, 314 kb] describes the system. The poster is also available in A4 or letter paper format."

Regards,

John Lewis.

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<a href="http://boinc.blogspot.com">Boinc y Astronomia</a>
<br>
<img src="http://150.214.190.154/BOINCStatistics/Signature/XnXnX/jgh/x.png" />

Pasquale Tricarico has an email address listed on the poster. It is :
Tricarico@WSU.EDU. Should anyone feel the need to show interest in this project, or maybe request some info.

I didn't see anywhere that he wanted all this email, but he did print his/her email address.

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They are still woking on the code and will not be ready for the alpha phase until early spring.

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NASA Open Source Software

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me@rescam.org

I wonder how long NASA holds their email?

Thank you for your inquiry to NASA.

The best source of information about the National Aeronautics and Space Administration starts with the NASA Web site: http://www.nasa.gov.

For specific research, contact the NASA Headquarters Library at library@hq.nasa.gov.

SETI stands for The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence. In late 1959 and early 1960, Giuseppe Cocconi and Philip Morrison published a key journal article suggesting there was extraterrestrial intelligence. At approximately the same time, Frank Drake signaled the modern SETI era. After finishing graduate school in 1958 Drake took a position at the newly founded National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) in Green Bank, West Virginia. It was there in 1960 that the first search took place. Named Project Ozma, the search was a two week observation of the stars Tau Ceti and Epsilon Eridani.

If you need additional information about SETI and the ongoing search to find life beyond our solar system, a full history of SETI is located on the Web at http://history.nasa.gov/seti.html.

We appreciate your interest in the Nation’s space program.

Cordially,

Public Communications Management Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration

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me@rescam.org

CLICK PIC! This Electronic PictureBook describes the history of planetary spacecraft beginning with the early lunar missions in support of the Apollo program to current plans for future missions to Mars, Jupiter, and Pluto. It provides a fascinating survey of the engineering difficulties and political challenges encountered along the way.

Astronomers discover new planet in unusual system

An international team of astronomers has announced the discovery of new planet orbiting the star HD 202206, bringing to 134 the total number of known extrasolar planets around normal stars. The new planet exists with an unusual system that also contains a brown dwarf, or "failed star."
Planet profile - (PIC)

Total planets discovered: 134*
Total planetary systems: 98
* Total includes only planets orbiting main sequence stars.

What is the Terrestrial Planet Finder (TPF)?
The Terrestrial Planet Finder observatories will study all aspects of planets outside our solar system: from their formation and development in disks of dust and gas around newly forming stars to the presence and features of those planets orbiting the nearest stars; from the numbers at various sizes and places to their suitability as an abode for life...

What are the TPF's science goals?
The primary scientific goal of TPF is the direct detection and characterization of Earth-like planets that orbit nearby stars...

What are the TPF's technology goals?
The execution of a mission as ambitious and challenging as TPF requires careful evaluation of potential technological approaches, often referred to by mission planners as "mission architectures"...

What is the TPF's project status?
Included in the nation's new vision for space is a plan for NASA to "conduct advanced telescope searches for Earth-like planets and habitable environments around other stars"...

TPF's architecture reviews

NASA announces science and technology working groups for TPF
(PLANET QUEST) -- NASA has announced the membership of two panels that will play pivotal roles in developing the mission concept and science requirements for the Terrestrial Planet Finder observatories...

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me@rescam.org

Bump



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The Second TPF/Darwin International Conference - (POSTER)

Dust Disks and the Formation, Evolution and Detection of Habitable Planets
Hosted by the TPF and Darwin Projects, the Michelson Science Center, and the Spitzer Science Center

Mission Bay, San Diego, California

Objective

This is the second annual joint TPF/Darwin conference and follows the very successful Heidelberg meeting in April 2003. The main purpose of the conference series is to develop the field of extra-solar planet research with two primary, near-term goals: (1) involve the community in establishing high level goals for TPF/Darwin; and (2) address key areas of research relevant to TPF/Darwin that are important to the design and architecture of TPF/Darwin.

Topics

1. Recent results on exo-zodiacal (EZ) disks from Spitzer (previously known as SITRF) and other space and ground observations. We expect exciting new results from Spitzer, HST/ACS, Keck/LBTI Interferometers, and ground-based sub-millimeter telescopes on the evolution, structure, composition, and frequency of debris disks. Among the issues we will address are how to extrapolate from the outer zodiacal clouds (Kuiper belt) detectable with Spitzer to the inner zodiacal clouds that will be measurable with TPF? What do the Spitzer measurements of the outer zodiacal cloud tell us about the presence or absence of planets?

2. The link between the physical conditions in the early solar nebula and astrobiology, e.g. how might astronomical conditions in the Hadean/Archaen periods affect the formation and evolution of life? Spitzer will provide new information on the properties of zodiacal disks in the first 500 million years of a planetary system's existence. What does a high level of exo-zodiacal emission imply in terms of bombardment and infall? What other astronomical properties of a star and planetary system might be relevant to the formation of stable, habitable planets, e.g. dynamics of giant planets, UV/X-ray output of stars, chemistry of nebular material, etc.?

3. Discussion of TPF/Darwin designs, science requirements and technology advances.

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me@rescam.org

Former athlete flexes new muscles for planet search
(PLANET QUEST) -- JPL physicist Ken Brown aims high. Twice named All-American in track and field, he placed 12th in the 1992 U.S. Olympic Trails qualifier in high jump. Now, he has his sights set on even loftier goals -- building an instrument to spot hard-to-see planets outside our solar system, inspiring students, improving education, and strengthening the community. Brown and his team at JPL are developing an experimental version of an instrument that will eventually fly in space. Called a "nulling" interferometer, the instrument will be able to cancel out the blinding light of a distant star to see if a planet shines close by. It will be a key part of NASA's Terrestrial Planet Finder, a future mission to search for planets like Earth elsewhere in our galaxy...

THE PLANET HUNTERS
An ongoing series of proflies and interviews with those who are working behind the scenes in NASA's quest for new worlds.

NULLING DEMO
This demo illustrates how the bright light of a star obscures the faint surrounding material.