Top 10 Extreme Planet Facts

Strange, But True - Our Solar System

Credit: IAU/Martin KornmesserThe worlds around our sun run the gamut from small and lifeless chunks of rock to gargantuan globes of gas. Our planet's siblings each have its own extreme features and crazy phenomena. -- Charles Q. Choi

Top 10 Extreme Planet Facts

1. The air of Earth

Credit: NASAIt might seem a bit like navel-gazing to point out how special Earth is — after all, we live here. Although Earth is covered in oceans of water, Mars could have once hosted seas as well. But nowhere else in the solar system can one find atmospheres loaded with free oxygen, which ultimately proved vital to one of the other unique features of Earth — us.



2. The Great Red Spot of Jupiter

Credit: NASA/ESA/A. Simon-Miller (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center)The most extraordinary feature on Jupiter's surface is undoubtedly the Great Red Spot, a giant storm seen for more than 300 years. At its widest diameter, the Great Red Spot is roughly three times as wide as Earth. Every now and again, the spot fades entirely.


3. The hexagon of Saturn

Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science InstituteSaturn may be most famous for its spectacular rings, but Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune have rings too. However, nothing like the giant hexagon circling Saturn's north pole has ever been seen on any other planet, with each of its sides nearly 7,500 miles (12,500 kilometers) across — big enough to fit nearly four Earths inside. Thermal images show it reaches some 60 miles (100 kilometers) down into the planet's atmosphere. Scientists have bandied about several other ideas concerning the hexagon's origin. One such idea is that the hexagon arises from a complex interaction between waves undulating through the atmosphere and gas churning up.


4. The storms of Mars

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Malin Space Science SystemsThe dust storms of Mars are the largest in the solar system, capable of blanketing the entire red planet and lasting for months. One theory as to why dust storms can grow so big on Mars starts with airborne dust particles absorbing sunlight, warming the Martian atmosphere in their vicinity. Warm pockets of air flow toward colder regions, generating winds. Strong winds lift more dust off the ground, which in turn heats the atmosphere, raising more wind and kicking up more dust.

5. The rings of Saturn

Credit: NASA/JPLSaturn is most famous for its spectacular rings. One ring, too faint to be seen from Earth and discovered just in 2009, measures at least 200 times the diameter of the planet — a billion Earths could fit inside the ring.


6. The winds of Neptune

Credit: NASA/JPLOn Neptune, one can find jet stream winds traveling at more than 1,500 mph. It remains a mystery as to how it gets the energy to drive the fastest planetary winds seen in the solar system, despite it being so far from the sun — at times farther from the sun than Pluto — and having relatively weak internal heat.


7. The weird tilt of Uranus

Credit: NASA and Erich Karkoschka, U. of ArizonaUnlike other worlds, Uranus is tilted so far that it essentially orbits the sun on its side, with the axis of its spin nearly pointing at the star. Many astronomers believe this unusual orientation might be due to a collision with an Earth-sized planet soon after it was formed.

8. The highs and lows of Mars

Credit: NASA/JPLThe red planet is home to both the highest mountain and the deepest, longest valley in the solar system. Olympus Mons is roughly 17 miles (27 kilometers) high, about three times as tall as Mount Everest, while the Valles Marineris can go as deep as 5 to 6 miles (8 to 10 kilometers) in some places and runs for roughly 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers), which is close to the width of Australia or the distance from Philadelphia to San Diego.


9. The wild temperature swings of Mercury

Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of WashingtonAs the planet nearest the sun, the surface of Mercury can reach a scorching 840 degrees F (450 degrees C). However, since this world doesn't have enough atmosphere to entrap any hName: Nine Planets Becomeat,Name: Nine Planets Becom at ight temperatures can plummet to -275 degrees F (-170 degrees C), a more than 1,100 degrees F temperature swing that is the greatest in the solar system.


10. The blistering surface of Venus

Credit: NASAAlthough Venus is only the planet second nearest the sun, its dense, toxic atmosphere traps heat in a runaway version of the greenhouse effect that warms up the Earth. As a result, temperatures on Venus reach 870 degrees F (465 degrees C), more than hot enough to melt lead.

NASA Telescope Confirms Alien Planet in Habitable Zone

This story was updated at 12:15 p.m. ET.


MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — NASA's planet-hunting Kepler spacecraft has confirmed the discovery of its first alien world in its host star's habitable zone — that just-right range of distances that could allow liquid water to exist — and found more than 1,000 new explanet candidates, researchers announced today (Dec. 5).

The new finds bring the Kepler space telescope's total haul to 2,326 potential planets in its first 16 months of operation.These discoveries, if confirmed, would quadruple the current tally of worlds known to exist beyond our solar system, which recently topped 700.

The potentially habitable alien world, a first for Kepler, orbits a star very much like our own sun. The discovery brings scientists one step closer to finding a planet like our own — one which could conceivably harbor life, scientists said.

"We're getting closer and closer to discovering the so-called 'Goldilocks planet,'" Pete Worden, director of NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., said during a press conference today. [Gallery: The Strangest Alien Planets]

The newfound planet in the habitable zone is called Kepler-22b. It is located about 600 light-years away, orbiting a sun-like star.

Kepler-22b's radius is 2.4 times that of Earth, and the two planets have roughly similar temperatures. If the greenhouse effect operates there similarly to how it does on Earth, the average surface temperature on Kepler-22b would be 72 degrees Fahrenheit (22 degrees Celsius).

Hunting down alien planets

The $600 million Kepler observatory launched in March 2009 to hunt for Earth-size alien planets in the habitable zone of their parent stars, where liquid water, and perhaps even life, might be able to exist.

Kepler detects alien planets using what's called the "transit method." It searches for tiny, telltale dips in a star's brightness caused when a planet transits — or crosses in front of — the star from Earth's perspective, blocking a fraction of the star's light.

The finds graduate from "candidates" to full-fledged planets after follow-up observations confirm that they're not false alarms. This process, which is usually done with large, ground-based telescopes, can take about a year.

The Kepler team released data from its first 13 months of operation back in February, announcing that the instrument had detected 1,235 planet candidates, including 54 in the habitable zone and 68 that are roughly Earth-size.

Of the total 2,326 candidate planets that Kepler has found to date, 207 are approximately Earth-size. More of them, 680, are a bit larger than our planet, falling into the "super-Earth" category. The total number of candidate planets in the habitable zones of their stars is now 48.

To date, just over two dozen of these potential exoplanets have been confirmed, but Kepler scientists have estimated that at least 80 percent of the instrument's discoveries should end up being the real deal.

More discoveries to come

The newfound 1,094 planet candidates are the fruit of Kepler's labors during its first 16 months of science work, from May 2009 to September 2010. And they won't be the last of the prolific instrument's discoveries.

"This is a major milestone on the road to finding Earth's twin," Douglas Hudgins, Kepler programscientist at NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C., said in a statement.

Mission scientists still need to analyze data from the last two years and on into the future. Kepler will be making observations for a while yet to come; its nominal mission is set to end in November 2012, but the Kepler team is preparing a proposal to extend the instrument's operations for another year or more.

Kepler's finds should only get more exciting as time goes on, researchers say.

"We're pushing down to smaller planets and longer orbital periods," said Natalie Batalha, Kepler deputy science team lead at Ames.

To flag a potential planet, the instrument generally needs to witness three transits. Planets that make three transits in just a few months must be pretty close to their parent stars; as a result, many of the alien worlds Kepler spotted early on have been blisteringly hot places that aren't great candidates for harboring life as we know it.

Given more time, however, a wealth of more distantly orbiting — and perhaps more Earth-like — exoplanets should open up to Kepler. If intelligent aliens were studying our solar system with their own version of Kepler, after all, it would take them three years to detect our home planet.

"We are getting very close," Batalha said. "We are homing in on the truly Earth-size, habitable planets."

How to Interpret 11/11/11 aka 11-11-11; Friday

How to Interpret 11/11/11 aka 11-11-11; Friday, November 11, 2011. + Eclipse Schedule. + Metaphysics Experiment. 11:11

100

The sunspot cycle is approximately eleven years.

11/11/11 (a.k.a. 11-11-11); Friday, November 11, 2011: Introduction

Welcome random search engine visitor. Many philosophies believe that you somehow ended up on this page for a reason. It is not known if it is the result of predestination, random chance, fate, a higher power, or something else.

This article provides a synopsis of the possible implications of the 11/11/11 date singularity and of the number eleven; followed by a quick metaphysics experiment.

Reference List: Date 11/11/11, Date 111111, Date 11/11/2011, Date 11-11-11, Date 11 11 11. Time 11:11

Reference List: Astronomy, Mathematics, Gambling, Veterans Day, Historical.

Reference List: (Not) Numerology, Astrology, Tarot Cards; i.e. -Numerology, -Astrology, -Tarot Cards.

Reference List: Metaphysics, Paranormal, Fate, Destiny, Random Chance, a Higher Power.

Reference List: Prediction, Predictions.

UPDATES:

An update section has begun further down the page. As a side note, this page will remain available after 11.11.11.

11/11/11 (a.k.a. 11-11-11); Friday, November 11, 2011: Mathematics

The number eleven is the fifth prime number (contrary to popular belief, the number one ( 1 ) is not a prime number).

The base numeric number system lends itself to some interesting peculiarities as relates to the number eleven.

Base 10 for example:

(2 digits) 11 x 11 = 121

(6 digits) 111111 x 111111 = 12345654321

(9 digits) 111111111 x 111111111 = 12345678987654321

Base 16 (hexadecimal) for example:

(2 digits) 11 x 11 = 121

(6 digits) 111111 x 111111 = 12345654321

(9 digits) 111111111 x 111111111 = 12345678987654321

• How to Interpret the Mathematical & Physical Concept of the Number One ( 1 )

11/11/11; Friday, November 11, 2011: Gambling

Blackjack players love the number eleven. It usually means time to double down, but not always.

Dice players love the number eleven. On the come-out roll, it’s as good as the number seven. Do not ask the crap dealers how to bet 11 the hardway…

The number eleven is a popular lottery number. This results in the per-person payouts being a little below average when eleven is one of the winning numbers.

The number eleven is a popular keno number. One wonders if the casinos and slot machine manufacturers make use of that fact…

President Eisenhower signing HR7786, changing Armistice Day to Veterans Day.

11/11/11; Friday, November 11, 2011: Veterans Day (formerly known as Armistice Day)

(Source: United States Department of Veterans Affairs):

<start>

World War I – known at the time as “The Great War” - officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France.

However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”

<end>

It is very likely that Veterans Day will be remembered/observed/celebrated much more than usual on November 11th, 2011.

11/11/11 (a.k.a. 11-11-11); Friday, November 11, 2011: Historical

The Great Blue Norther of 11/11/11:

"One-hundred years ago, November 11th, 1911: The Great Blue Norther descended upon America. The day started fine; there were even record highs for that time of year. Then it all changed; temperatures began to drop. Within the space of ten minute: the temperature dropped 40 to 50 degrees; by midnight a 66 degree temperature drop was recorded. There were dust storms, thunderstorms, tornados, and blizzards. Over 300 deaths were reported."

In the interests of full disclosure: NOAA.gov reports that sudden 50 degree temperature drops, though unusual, are not that rare. See chart below.

The Great Blue Norther acquired its name not from the extreme temperature changes, but from the accompanying weather phenomena.

11/11/11 (a.k.a. 11-11-11); Friday, November 11, 2011: Historical

Even when taking into account the differences between the Gregorian and Julian calendars:

Nothing significant appears to have happened nine-hundred years ago during the year 1111.

Nothing significant appears to have happened a thousand years ago during the year 1011.

Nothing significant appears to have happened two thousand years ago during the year 11.

The Dark Ages spanned the 5th to 15th centuries (approximately 450 -1450).

Schedule of Solar and Lunar Eclipses for Year 2011

Partial Solar Eclipse: Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Partial Solar Eclipse: Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Total Lunar Eclipse: Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Partial Solar Eclipse: Friday, July 1, 2011

Partial Solar Eclipse: Friday, November 25, 2011

Depending on your location, your results may vary.

11/11/11 (a.k.a. 11-11-11); Friday, November 11, 2011: Singularity Summary

Most predictions and opinions concerning 11/11/11 are based on or rooted in its mathematical uniqueness as a number.

11*11*11: There are three possible scenarios:

1. Something good happens— There is absolutely no scientific basis for this belief. There are no known logical premises for this belief. The belief that something good will happen is based solely on spiritualism, faith, and/or innate optimism. This belief is not necessarily a bad thing; we don’t know everything; the probability is not zero.

2. Nothing happens— This is the most likely scenario. Just because an unusual date number sequence occurs doesn’t mean that something extraordinary will happen. Usually it’s a non-event.

3. Something bad happens— There is absolutely no scientific basis for this belief. There are no known logical premises for this belief. The belief that something bad will happen is based solely on pessimism of reality. This belief is not necessarily false; after all, things are generally/usually a mess. The probability is not zero.

Reserved for Day 11/11/11 Updates

Here is where the Day 11/11/11 updates will be; time, space, and bandwidth permitting. There may also be an occasional pre-11/11/11 update. Entries will be chronological rather than blog style.

Update (November 1, 2011):

Here are the survey results to-date as the month of November, year 2011 begins.

For the question, “What do you believe will happen on 11/11/11”, the survey statistics at the beginning of the day on November 1^st were as follows:

47% believe something good will happen on a global scale.

40% believe nothing significant will happen on a global scale.

14% believe something bad will happen on a global scale.

7174 people have voted in this poll to date.

For the question, “Do you feel lucky today”, the cumulative results to-date (as of the end of October, year 2011) were as follows:

71% felt lucky on the day they filled out the poll.

29% said they did not feel lucky that particular day.

5811 people have voted in this poll to date.

If previous experiments are any indication, the above percentages could change significantly over the next 11 days; particularly so on day 11/11/11.

Update (November 3, 2011, end of the day):

For the question, “What do you believe will happen on 11/11/11”, we have a minor percentage change. "Something Good" has dropped a tad. "Something Bad" has dropped a tad.

46% believe something good will happen on a global scale.

40% believe nothing significant will happen on a global scale.

13% believe something bad will happen on a global scale.

8199 people have now voted in this poll to date.

The “Do you feel lucky today” percentages remain unchanged. That vote count is now 6608. There are now some media reports that courthouse clerks are bracing for all the marriage license requests of people who want to be married on 11/11/11.

Update (November 7, 2011, Monday, 2:00 AM, Pacific Standard Time, USA):

Approaching 10K on Survey One (9797).

Update (November 7, 2011, Monday, 9:04 AM, Pacific Standard Time, USA):

Survey One reaches 10,000 votes.

46% believe something good will happen on a global scale.

41% believe nothing significant will happen on a global scale.

13% believe something bad will happen on a global scale.

Survey Two remains consistent at 8000+ votes.
71% felt lucky on the day they filled out the poll.
29% said they did not feel lucky that particular day.

Approximately 1:20 PM, For the first time in a long time the Survey Two percentages have changed.

70% felt lucky on the day they filled out the poll.

30% said they did not feel lucky that particular day.

8222 people have now voted.

The media reports have started about wedding chapels being booked solid for day 11/11/11.

As of 2:30 PM today (Monday, November 7, 2011), this page has had 10,969 visits via 147 countries/territories in the last 14-and-a-half hours.

For the month of November (as of 2:30 PM today, Monday, November 7, 2011), this page has had 66,233 visits via 180 countries/territories.

For this same month-to-date time frame here are some random country stats:

32,776 USA

3,681 Canada

1 Greenland (I guess they're not that interested...)

381 Brazil

125 Russia

2,713 Australia

6,752 UK

3,139 India

100 China

1 Afghanistan (understandable, they're kind of busy over there...)

354 Spain

1,537 The Continent of Africa

There are media reports that businesses around the world are having 11-11-11 sales, discounts, and deals this Friday. And no doubt some will probably extend through the weekend.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Well, today is the day that Asteroid 2005 YU55 will give us its regards. It will zip by earth inside the moon's orbit this afternoon in the USA and close to midnight in parts of Europe. Fortunately, the asteroid is scheduled to just give us a friendly wave, as apposed to a high-five.

As of 8:50 AM PST USA, the Survey Two results are back to 71% Yes and 29% No. Vote count at 8,712.

As of 9:30 AM, PST USA, November 8, 2011; the paradigmsearch.hubpages.com site has had 89,186 month-to-date pageviews. Have you signed up with HubPagesyet?

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

There will be a National Emergency Alert Test in the U.S. today at 2:00 PM, Eastern Standard Time. Every TV broadcast, cable channel, satellite, and radio station is supposed to be a part of it.

Meanwhile, at ~ 7:40 AM PST, the Surveys One & Two percentages remain essentially unchanged to within one percentage point..

The U.S. stock market is unhappy with Italy. The DOW closed down ~390 points and the NASDAQ closed down 100+ points.

Survey percentages remain constant. Survey Two turnout approaching 10K (9,860).

It should be noted that it is already November 10^th in Asia, Australia, Philippines, etc. In other words, 11.11.11 is already less than 24 hours away for many people.

4:00 PM PST USA (Nov. 9^th ), Survey Two reaches 10,019 votes. Results remain steadfast.

71% felt lucky on the day they filled out the poll.
29% said they did not feel lucky that particular day.

Day 11.11.11 ~~ November 11, 2011

Day 11.11.11 has already begun in certain parts of the world. A good very early morning to New Zealand and Eastern Russia.

As 11.11.11 begins its march across the planet, here is the first of many Survey One and Survey Two month-to-date results for archival purposes.

46% believe something good will happen on a global scale.

41% believe nothing significant will happen on a global scale.

12% believe something bad will happen on a global scale.

13,547 people have voted in this poll to date.

71% felt lucky on the day they filled out the poll.
29% said they did not feel lucky that particular day.
10,894 people have voted in this poll to date.

Meanwhile, in the U.S it is the morning of November 10th; in Europe it is the afternoon; in Asia it is night. It is interesting to note that Russia has 11 time zones.

Nerd Year will be celebrated this Friday in the U.S. Ones and zeros is where it's at.

Stock markets have just closed across Europe for November 10^th. Nothing drastic happened.

More and more Day 11.11.11 sales are being announced worldwide.

Australia, the Philippines, Japan, China, and many others have now entered Day 11.11.11.

For the first 9 hours of Nov. 10^th in the U.S., this page has had in excess of 25,000 page views worldwide.

India has now joined Day 11.11.11.

For the first 12 hours of Nov. 10^th in the U.S., this page is now in excess of 40,000 page views worldwide.

U.S. Stock markets closed for November 10^th. Nothing drastic happened.

Moscow, Russia is now Day 11.11.11.

There are media reports about gamblers and the number 11. The casinos worldwide are going to get fat on Friday. As will the various lotteries.

There are now predictions being made that day 11.11.11 will break birth records around the world. Apparently many soon-to-be parents are scheduling cesarean sections and inductions to be done on this date.

Middle and Eastern Europe are now Day 11.11.11.

Middle and Eastern Africa are now Day 11.11.11.

The survey stats continue to remain amazingly consistent, 2:30 PM PST USA, Nov.10^th.

46% believe something good will happen on a global scale.

42% believe nothing significant will happen on a global scale.

12% believe something bad will happen on a global scale.

15,816 people have voted in this poll to date.

71% felt lucky on the day they filled out the poll.
29% said they did not feel lucky that particular day.
12,745 people have voted in this poll to date.

UTC - Universal Time / GMT is now Day 11.11.11.

The jaunt across the Atlantic Oceans' begins.

Day 11.11.11 has unambiguously landed on the eastern shores of South America, 3:00 AM UTC.

Latest Invention: PETMAN - Human-Like Robot Created to Test Chemical Protection Garments

The US military has teamed up with Boston Dynamics, the developer of the BigDog, to create an anthropomorphic robot, the goal of which is to test new chemical protection garments.
Researchers called their robot PETMAN (Protection Ensemble Test Mannequin) and with its help the team will b able to study the effectiveness of new haz-mat suits against chemical agents.
It is worth mentioning that previously researchers made se of such robots, but the machines were always supported mechanically and were unable to make a lot of different motions like the new robot.
PETMAN can balance itself, walk freely, crawl and do a number of movements to test the suits to their limits. In addition, the robot is able to vary its temperature, humidity and sweating, thus imitating human physiology and creating conditions that are closer to reality.
The robot's size, shape and weight are very close to an average human - it weights 180 pounds and is 6ft tall.
At the moment the robot passes through a 13 month design phase. The next step will be building, installing and validating PETMAN. This phase will last approximately 17 months.