New Large Rocky Planet Found

An anonymous reader writes "Discovery News is reporting the discovery of a super-sized rocky planet orbiting a red-dwarf. The star is located about 9000 ly from the sun. The planet consists of rock and ice and orbits at around the distance of asteroid belt. The planet could not grow to Jupiter size because the star is small and the system ran out of gas. The planet is about 13 earth masses and was discovered using the microlensing technique. Since most of the stars in the Milky Way are smaller than the sun, we should expect more of similar findings."

Bad Joke

[wasted]

As more of these planets are found using microlensing, perhaps someone could put together the "Rocky Planet Picture Show."

Sorry, had to do that.

Re:Bad Joke

[Anonymous Coward]

Sorry, had to do that.

No, you didn't.

Super-sized?

[malsdavis]

What the hell does a "super-sized rocky planet" mean?

I really hate the way Discovery channel always takes information and adjusts it purely for their largest target audience - extremely overweight, couch potatoes who dislike going for more than 5 minutes without seeing the words "super-size".

Re:ya and so....

[Anonymous Coward]

We have found other planets like this before, this is not news.

Sure, to YOU it's just a dupe of celestial proportions.

But some of us are FROM Altair Centauri, and this is the first news item we've had in 9000 years, you insensitive clod.

Re:Ok Where are the E.T.s

[0racle]

intelligent life like ourselves
One of these things is not like the other.

Re:Ok Where are the E.T.s

[Dmala]

...I'd like to see what kind of muscles developed on organisms that lived on a planet with 13 times the mass of the earth.

I'm not sure I would. Something tells me we'll have to be really, *really* nice to them.

Fill-er-up!

[SeeMyNuts!]

"The planet could not grow to Jupiter size because the star is small and the system ran out of gas."

No problem. They'll just coast another few light years, and it turns out there's a Speedway just past the next pulsar. Add a couple chili dogs from the snack bar, and there'll be enough gas in that system for another 5 million years.

ly?

[yagu]

Wow! First time I've ever seen light years abbreviated (or formed to an acronym) as ly! Here's one of my favorites: WTF?

Re:ya and so....

[freeweed]

You know this is why people are loosing interest in the space program! Useless findings after useless findings are boring people to death.

Honestly what impact will this find have on the scientific community?

No, it's flamebait because you're flaming. "Boring people to death?" Doubtful, considering how much news an event like this generates. There are plenty of people on Slashdot alone talking about this, never mind the thousands of others who don't visit Slashdot.

Having a difference in opinion, even a critical one, is not what makes your post flamebait.

The "wow this is teh ghey! stupid boring scientists, who cares" presentation is what makes it flamebait. Honestly, if you don't care about these stories, DON'T READ THEM. Whining that they don't interest you is pretty boring in and of itself.

Re:ya and so....

[Bad D.N.A.]

They found a new planet, 13 times the mass of Earth, and you're bored?

dude. You can't explain the relevance of the study when your audience does not understand the word "relevance"

Re:ly?

[meringuoid]

'Lyrs' is also common.

I thought that was an abbreviation for 'politicians'. As in 'Tony Blair and George Bush are lyrs.'

Re:Ok Where are the E.T.s

[meringuoid]

...I'd like to see what kind of muscles developed on organisms that lived on a planet with 13 times the mass of the earth.

I'm not sure I would. Something tells me we'll have to be really, *really* nice to them.

I have a mental image here of guys with ridiculous musculature, big hair, monkey tails, various impressive ki-based techniques, and a very bad attitude. I for one am hoping like hell for the sake of the rest of the galaxy that the place gets, er... hit by a comet, yeah, a comet...