Richest Planetary System Discovered With 7 Planets 245
eldavojohn writes "The European Southern Observatory has announced that with the aid of their 190 HARPS measurements they have found the solar system with the most planets yet. Furthermore they claim 'This remarkable discovery also highlights the fact that we are now entering a new era in exoplanet research: the study of complex planetary systems and not just of individual planets. Studies of planetary motions in the new system reveal complex gravitational interactions between the planets and give us insights into the long-term evolution of the system.' The star is HD 10180, located 127 light-years away in the southern constellation of Hydrus, that boasts at least five planets (with two more expected) that have the equivalent of our own Titius–Bode law (their orbits follow a regular pattern). Their survey of stars also helped reinforce the correlation 'between the mass of a planetary system and the mass and chemical content of its host star. All very massive planetary systems are found around massive and metal-rich stars, while the four lowest-mass systems are found around lower-mass and metal-poor stars.' While we won't be making a 127 light-year journey anytime soon, the list of candidates for systems of interest grows longer."
the richest? (Score:1, Funny)
Quick, tax it!
Re:Richest? (Score:5, Funny)
[tears up]
Re:Don't start planning that vacation just yet (Score:5, Funny)
Did you extrapolate Moore's Law in that calculation, Captain Obvious?
7 Planets? Pff... (Score:5, Funny)
I know of a solar system that has 8 planets. Used to have 9.
Re:Richest? (Score:2, Funny)
At seven planets, I'm reasonably sure this qualifies as the *second* richest planetary system we're aware of.
No no no, you're thinking the wrong way. They've found Magrathea!
HD 10180 (Score:1, Funny)
Is that star HD 10180i, or HD 10180p?
Re:7 Planets? Pff... (Score:3, Funny)
I think they're limiting it to real solar systems, Alderaan doesn't count.
Re:Don't start planning that vacation just yet (Score:4, Funny)
you might want to keep in mind that 127 light years is a very long way--an almost unimaginable distance, in fact
I mean, you might think it's a long way down the road to the chemist, but that's just peanuts compared to space.
Re:Richest? (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Don't start planning that vacation just yet (Score:3, Funny)
"The amount of electron-spitting components doubles in density every 18 months."
There you go. I call it Ulriks law. Spread the word.
Re:Don't start planning that vacation just yet (Score:5, Funny)
So you're basing a 4 million year trip on current propulsion technology? Seems pretty archaic to me. I certainly hope that in 4 million years enough new ideas would come out that our ideas of propulsion would be long obsolete.
When I travel to distant systems, I plan on using some super cool technology that I will call Magnetic Focusing Expansion of Relative Space (MFERS for short). The idea is that we just generate a magnetic attraction between two distant points and turn the thing on. It should also have the benefit of shielding the craft from any inconvenient chunks of matter between A and B. Also, this is science. Science that I base entirely on facts that are not factual (yet). Propulsion is for cavemen. Think of this more like Propullsion.
Re:Richest? (Score:2, Funny)
Seems there's no shortage of apostrophes...
"...the Solar System's eight planets..." (Score:3, Funny)
Nine.
Re:Don't start planning that vacation just yet (Score:1, Funny)
We are so dumb that some of us haven't learned how to format sentences and paragraphs yet.
Re:Don't start planning that vacation just yet (Score:5, Funny)
I hope someone can come up with a better example... she isn't "just arriving", the light is "just arriving". If you cannot separate one's "self" from the light representation thereof, have fun in front of the mirror!
Kinda reminds me of the Joo Janta 200 Super Chromatic Peril-Sensitive Sunglasses...
Re:Richest? (Score:4, Funny)
"Her"? How one determines the gender of pet rock??
Obviously you ask, asshole.
Re:Don't start planning that vacation just yet (Score:3, Funny)
Well, you take a double-blind test panel of psychology students, get them to sign a mental health waiver, and ask them to imagine a set of different astronomical distances.
Then you develop a graded imagination test: probably something involving Legos and crayons.
Finally you screen out the students whose minds have boggled due to failure* of imagination, remove them to a secure hardened psychiatric facility**, and continue testing. At 100% failure rate, you have a known unimaginable concept. You then put it in a sealed box with memehazard logos, affix anti-scrying tape, and dispatch to the pareidolon vault at the Department of Unthinkable Conjectures.
It's not pretty, but it's science.
* Imagination can fail in many ways, some more spectacular than others
** Do not on any account attempt this with psychology lecturers.
Re:Don't start planning that vacation just yet (Score:4, Funny)
As far as i remember, homo sapiens is about 200.000 years old.
Wow, that's a damn good memory you have. What was it like back then?