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They’re unsure whether it’s from the planet or the star. Can’t they just check whether it’s from an ion of water or the stable molecule? (Which IIRC is a questi
by ianai 3y ago
They’re unsure whether it’s from the planet or the star. Can’t they just check whether it’s from an ion of water or the stable molecule? (Which IIRC is a question of the spectra observed.) I remember from undergrad the chemistry in stars would often have pretty extreme ionizations like OH^-12. If it’s a high ionization and still on the planet that seems unlikely to be habitable as we know it (or something fleeting from a lightning strike).
- wcoenen 3y ago> If it’s a high ionization and still on the planet that seems unlikely to be habitable as we know it "habitable as we know it" is already ruled out by the 430 degree Celsius surface temperature of the planet that was mentioned in the article.
- ianai 3y agoCouldn’t find that. Then sounds like it’s an ion and explains the ambiguity.
- jobs_throwaway 3y agoI wonder if that's uniform. Say around the poles, could there be more temperate spots?
- jkubicek 3y agoThe planet is tidally locked to the star, so absent an atmosphere, the side of the planet facing away from the star will be freezing. If there is an atmosphere then the opposite side of the planet may be a bit more mild?
- ianai 3y agoActually if it’s tidally locked a lot of complications could be involved. If the backside of it managed to be hot it’d probably imply an atmosphere or young planet (guessing) or maybe a recent flip (see link). All just my naive thoughts. https://youtu.be/SJWKExj7-IA https://youtu.be/SJWKExj7-IA Sure would be something if such planets could have atmospheres. That’d seem to imply a temperature gradient from the hot to cold side and would provide a mechanism for heat transfer.
- ericmay 3y agoSorry I know this is low effort but "Can’t they just check" in the context of the James Webb Space Telescope and NASA operating it did make me chuckle. I'm pretty sure they checked :)
- foobarian 3y agoI interpret this more charitably by replacing "can't they just check" with "I wonder why this couldn't be answered by checking"
- botanical 3y agohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Climate_Orbiter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Climate_Orbiter
- ianai 3y agoThanks. Next time I’ll remember to not comment.
- Cymrukicks 3y agoWhy it gave me a chuckle too? Not everyone is an expert on everything here.
- ianai 3y agoThis isn’t Reddit.
- andrewflnr 3y agoWhich is exactly why comments like "Next time I’ll remember to not comment" are out of place.
- lumb63 3y agoTrust the experts. Never question anything.