Comments on: Lost in space: rogue planet spotted?

By: zen

zen — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 14:21:50 +0000

100 light years is not a “vast distance.” Relatively, it’s in our neighborhood.

By: Lord Penguin

Lord Penguin — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 20:17:38 +0000

Tilt is more or less meaningless without a host star to compare it to (although the galactic plane does work as a reference, it doesn’t make any difference to the planet which way it is tilted except in special conditions). The way it appears tilted to us is just based on what angle we see it at, and there isn’t really any way to tell until actual pictures are produced, or its origin is pinpointed. As for the color, it probably glows a faint red (possibly only infrared) from internal heat, rather than blue.

By: Foye Lowe

Foye Lowe — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 19:24:05 +0000

I’m pretty sure that “artist’s impression” has way too much tilt. And the color is definitely off . . .

By: Ian

Ian — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 03:28:22 +0000

It’s the Cybermen!

By: Gorden Russell

Gorden Russell — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 15:02:20 +0000

There were rogue planets in “When Worlds Collide.” That became a fun movie back in the day. Just watch and see those scientific illiterates who believe that the Mayan calendar predicts doom on December 21st. They will say that this is the planet they have expected all along. None of them will pay attention to the part that says this planet is 100 light years away. They just don’t understand the great distances in the vastness of space.