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NASA Space Science

Exoplanet Candidates Revealed 49

Posted by CmdrTaco from the nice-place-to-visit dept.
An anonymous reader writes "Last summer, NASA announced that the Kepler space telescope had identified more than 700 exoplanet 'candidates' from the first few months of observations in 2009. Only 312 of the candidates were initially made public, while 400 others (click the green search button) were sequestered until February 2011. The team is soon expected to announce that a large number of these candidates have been confirmed as exoplanets. A non-profit organization in Boulder, Colorado supports scientific research on the Kepler data through $10 adopt-a-star donations. The price is $100 for confirmed exoplanets, so hurry while these 700+ stars are still 'candidates'!"
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Exoplanet Candidates Revealed More

Exoplanet Candidates Revealed

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  • How do I get one of these named after me?

  • Let's say I buy an exoplanet for 100$... then what? In 500+ years when space travel becomes commonplace will my descendants be able to claim mineral rights on this exoplanet?

    • No, in 500+ years when humans finally reach that planet, they'll wonder why the hell it is named "Syberz". Seriously, wouldn't it be worth at least $100 to name a planet "microsoftsucks"?

      • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

        by Anonymous Coward

        In 500 years will 'microsoft' or 'sucks' have the same meaning as they do now?
        Imagine planet: "Ye olde tyme pudding shoppe doth inhale sharply"

        o_O

      • I don't think you even get it named after you..

        Your adoption will be acknowledged in the text version of the catalog, in the placemark for your adopted star in Google Sky, and in the table above.

        So it'll show you that you donated in three places.. big woop..

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Thud457 ( 234763 )
        If I had $100, I'd name a planet Urectum , after the Phoenician god of angry winds.

        • I misread that at first as saying you wanted to name the planet Unicron, which is still a pretty badass choice.

        • Formerly Uranus, astronomers renamed this planet in 2620 "to end that stupid joke once and for all."

          -Futurama

          • Re: (Score:3)

            by mangu ( 126918 )

            Formerly Uranus, astronomers renamed this planet in 2620 "to end that stupid joke once and for all.

            The joke will never end as long as there are assholes who enjoy it. After all, that god's name was pronounced "oorahnoos".

            • I always thought it was pronounced "urine us".

            • Formerly Uranus, astronomers renamed this planet in 2620 "to end that stupid joke once and for all.

              The joke will never end as long as there are assholes who enjoy it. After all, that god's name was pronounced "oorahnoos".

              Yes, because we pronounce all words derived from the dead language Ancient Greek exactly the same way as they were spoken three thousand years ago, generally by comparing our version with the extant phonographic recordings of Socrates' lectures.

          • Formerly "Your Anus", Astronomers renamed that part of your body "Ur Butt" in 2420, "to end that stupid joke once and for all."

            - Idiocracy

            (OK, it's probably not true ; but Idiocracy is so much more depressingly plausible in it's overall theme.)

    • No the real danger is when space travel becomes common place and your descendants are required to go there every week and clean the place up from trash and debris that all the people on the bypass toss there.

  • 200 years from now (Score:5, Insightful)

    by suso ( 153703 ) * on Thursday January 20, 2011 @01:05PM (#34942112) Journal

    Some captain will be looking at their navigation interface and there will be an option for star system naming convention and it will read

    • Intergalactic Federation Official Name
    • Common Name
    • Localized name
    • Old earth adopt-a-star naming system ($19.95 and download required)

  • Can I name one Mongo? (Score:3)

    by Tekfactory ( 937086 ) on Thursday January 20, 2011 @01:14PM (#34942218) Homepage

    Emperor Ming will be pleased.

  • When the data is made public, I'll be setting a competing naming registry. Be sure to send me your $100, you'll get naming rights for the exoplanet of your choice!

  • 1. What do you consider as your greatest strength as a would be exoplanet?
    2. What was your biggest mistake? I mean, have you ever orbited the wrong way, or destroyed your own satellite?
    3. Where do you see yourself in five years?

    • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward

      1. What do you consider as your greatest strength as a would be exoplanet?

      First off, I'm a planet, and I'm not in your solar system. So, I think I'm more than qualified.

      2. What was your biggest mistake? I mean, have you ever orbited the wrong way, or destroyed your own satellite?

      Well, maybe once ... back in college. But, really, who is to decide what is the wrong way to orbit? I was just experimenting. I have friends that orbit that way, and we'd been drinking you see. And that whole satellite thing wa

    • Sarah Palin is rumored to be an exoplanet candidate for 2012.
  • Houston, all systems are go for the launch to planet 1-800-ASK-GARY.

  • http://www.associatepublisher.com/e/l/li/list_of_planets_in_futurama.htm [associatepublisher.com]

    Though I thought there was one that the professor got the crew to go to that was named something like "Death Planet of the Doom Cluster" or something like that.

    Just think in 1000 years, some guy looking at Google SpaceMap will see a reference for something like that... "Er... set a course for Planet Death, er in the Doom Cluster?"

    Sulu: "Are you frickin' kidding me?"

  • http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/kepler/multimedia/images/kepler10_1.html [nasa.gov] Has gotta be the NASA version of photoshop On the other hand, for all the gazillions of dollars going into this project, they seem to have outsourced web design and layout to some undergrads, so maybe the same people did the image

  • Sort of a questionable initial post here - no new candidates were actually revealed today, or anytime recently. However you can avail yourself of the raw lightcurves in bulk, and declare your own candidates, if you want to. So just go for it, if you have the time -

  • So I can pass this on through generations of my family until the United Continents of Earth start taking over planets and then my family get fat paid? That might not be a bad investment for $100

  • Doc says I need to lose a little weight. I say, "What's wrong with rotund gaseous bodies in circular motion? Look at Uranus!"

  • Anyone notice that Stephen Colbert has apparently already adopted an exoplanet-bearing star? Perhaps its the future site of the Colbert Nation. http://whitedwarf.org/palebluedot/planets.html [whitedwarf.org]

  • ...When they were scrabbling to find exoplanets one at a time?

    I'll say it again: we live in interesting times.

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