Hi everyone,
There's an interesting article today in the Age worth reading:
http://www.theage.com.au/world/et-there-goes-the-neighbourhood-20090216-8984.html
The idea that there are many Earth like planets scattered throughout our Galaxy isn't new however Astronomers are getting closer to confirming the existence of other Earths via better telescopes/techniques etc. Back in 1695 the famous Astronomer/Physicist Christiaan Huygens wrote about these Earths (click on picture for hi res version):
Most people will agree with the Astronomer's assessment when they actually get to see a detailed photo of one of these Earths when they launch space based interferometers and this would convince the majority of the public. The question is what do we do once we have confirmed there are many Earths in our Galaxy? We can sit down and talk all day about possible ETs, aliens, microbes etc etc but the best way to answer these questions would be to actually go there by sending probes or people to study it in detail. And why bother with all this anyway? Waiting 2000 years for data is too long and it looks like we're running out of $cash at the moment...
Apart from its scientific value there's a more serious side to all this. Some people would argue that the only way for us to survive is by spreading to new lands (looking back in history). Overpopulation, lack of resources, asteroid impact, nuclear holocaust, WWIII, famine, desease etc are all a possiblity in the future and having all your eggs in one basket ie 6.8 billion people (March 2009) all on one planet isn't a good idea.
All that's required to colonize this new Earth would be an engine that would allow interstellar travel to be practical and economical based on new Physics. As mentioned in a previous post, our current understanding of Physics doesn't allow this (rockets etc aren't feasible solutions as far as interstellar travel is concerned) however there's always the fine print at the bottom of the page worth reading ;-)
Also attached some photos of Rhapsody of the Seas anchored in Athol Bay last Wednesday. Rotterdam and Europa took up CQ and Darling Harbour so she couldn't berth. We were doing passenger transfers from Millers Point customs tent to the ship round the clock, I swapped with the next Captain at 5.30 am! Interesting to note that when the passengers/staff board/dissembark they have cards they have to swipe to get in or out the barriers inside so the onboard computer knows exactly who's onboard.
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