Thursday, February 7, 2013

ASTRONOMICAL LIES

I saw this post in my AIAA newsletter. I am constantly amazed at the Buck Rogers scenarios that drive the search for extraterrestrial life just because we evolved so someone else out there must have evolved also. These are the stories that drive the funding for our NASA programs.

Closest Earth-Sized Planet May Be Around Red Dwarf Star.


The AP (2/7, Dunn) reports, "Astronomers reported Wednesday that the nearest Earth-like planet may be just 13 light-years away - or some 77 trillion miles. That planet hasn't been found yet, but should be there based on the team's study of red dwarf stars." Using data from the Kepler space telescope, researchers from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics led by Courtney Dressing determined that 6% of the galaxies 75 billion red dwarf stars could have Earth-like planets. According to the article, this "should simplify the search for extraterrestrial life."

And this story that would have a different finding if posted by a creation scientist:

Bacteria Found In Antarctica Could Have Implications For Astrobiology.


The New York Times (2/7, A18, Gorman, Subscription Publication) reports, "For the first time, scientists report, they have found bacteria living in the cold and dark deep under the Antarctic ice, a discovery that might advance knowledge of how life could survive on other planets or moons and that offers the first glimpse of a vast ecosystem of microscopic life in underground lakes in Antarctica." John Priscu of Montana State University led the team that made the discovery in Lake Whillans, although the article notes more study is needed to determine exactly what type of bacteria was discovered. NASA's Chris McKay "said in an e-mail that such analysis could determine if the bacteria in Lake Whillans have implications for the possible discovery of extraterrestrial life." He said, "If it was using a local energy source, it would be interesting. ... If it's just consuming organics carried in from elsewhere, it is of much less interest."
It may be that the bacteria was there from before Noah's flood caused the ice caps at the poles.

No comments:

Post a Comment