The next few decades of astronomy are going to be astounding...

Giant Magellan Telescope

James Webb Space Telescope

Mission to Europa - Could there be life?

Exploring Titan

New Horizon Mission to Pluto

Large Synoptic Survey Telescope

Thirty Meter Telescope

Clearly, this is an amazing time to be a fan of the cosmos. Words can't describe the number and magnitude of scientific breakthroughs that are likely to result in the next decade (and generation) of astronomy.

My personal thoughts?

We'll have discovered definite extra terrestrial life within the next couple decades (thanks, IRM). And it'll be in the oceans of Europa, or in the geysers of Enceladus, or the hydrocarbon lakes on Titan in some bizarre form.

Aside from the discovery of life (arguably the greatest discovery we'll ever make), the sheer imaging power of the next generation of telescopes is going to provide space-lovers with the most incredible pictures of the cosmos ever seen. And I thought Hubble pictures were beautiful .

[edit on 6-8-2010 by SaosinEngaged]

[edit on 6-8-2010 by SaosinEngaged]

Originally posted by SaosinEngaged

We'll have discovered definite extra terrestrial life by 2020. And it'll be in the oceans of Europa, or in the geysers of Enceladus, or the hydrocarbon lakes on Titan in some bizarre form.

While we might just find life in those places, it's sadly not going to be in the next 10 years. It takes about 5-7 years to travel to some of those places which doesn't give them very much time to put something together. Especially if we had to drill the ice on Europa.

The next ten years will be quite exciting though even without finding life!

IRM

reply to post by InfaRedMan


Touche!

I forgot to consider that, but thanks for pointing it out.

More like by 2030.

But yes, regardless of the possibility for extra terrestrial life, I can't even tell you how giddy I'm getting over the next generation of deep space imagery from some of these telescopes. We'll be seeing further and more clearly than ever before.

Originally posted by SaosinEngaged
I can't even tell you how giddy I'm getting over the next generation of deep space imagery from some of these telescopes. We'll be seeing further and more clearly than ever before.

I hear you! It's all rather exciting isn't it. It's certainly a great time to be alive in that sense. It kind of makes me wish I could live forever just to witness all the incredible things we are going to learn about our universe... given we don't screw the planet or ourselves in the foreseeable future.

IRM

I bet once we find a decent way to travel from earth to planets within our solar system we're going to find simple bacterial life on almost all planets and complex life on several.

Originally posted by hippomchippo
I bet once we find a decent way to travel from earth to planets within our solar system we're going to find simple bacterial life on almost all planets and complex life on several.

What kind of complex life do you imagine and on what planet/moon?

IRM

[edit on 6/8/10 by InfaRedMan]

Originally posted by InfaRedMan

Originally posted by hippomchippo
I bet once we find a decent way to travel from earth to planets within our solar system we're going to find simple bacterial life on almost all planets and complex life on several.

What kind of complex life do you imagine and on what planet/moon?

IRM

[edit on 6/8/10 by InfaRedMan]

Complex life perhaps beneath Europa, a chance of complex life surviving in the gas giants, mars too if we happened to overlook signs of life with the rovers and surveying.

We just need to look at extremophiles on earth to see how far the spectrum of life goes.

I can't really guess what complex alien life will look like, but I'm going to guess sort of like earth but changed by the features of the planet and the planets history(comet impacts, etc)



[edit on 6-8-2010 by hippomchippo]

reply to post by hippomchippo


I've heard speculation about jellyfish-like organisms and possibly something resembling arthropods dwelling in the oceans under Europa.

The mechanism that gives way to life is the cracking on the moon's surface from tidal pressure from the gravity of Jupiter. When the moon cracks, liquid water rises from inside the planet briefly until either the cracks close or the water freezes, but during that time, it has been speculated that photosynthesis can occur on the order of some of the photosynthesizing undersea plant life we find here on earth.

Very interesting stuff.

I point any of you to "The Universe" documentary, specifically the episode titled "The Search for E.T" which resides in Season 1. It covers what I've just detailed.

And if we start finding some legitimate super earths, the possibility that life can evolve from liquid water and sunlight, as it did here, is very real (and very interesting!).

Yeah man, most definitely..
It really is going to be amazing!
It'll also get allot more people interested in astronomy.
definitely an exciting time!

good thread!

As far as imagining how alien life would look like, it is all speculation and you can let your mind run wild.

For the sake of argument, I hope that when you guys refer to complex life, you mean complex systems like animals and plants. The atmospheric/temperature etc conditions on gas giants, with high likeliness, won't allow complex life.

Although, even though I am no chemist, I find that scientist looking for life based only on our composition and that of other animals, is rather stupid. Who's to say that other elements, given the right circumstances, can't produce life. Thus it is why I won't rule out the possibility of any kind of life on gas giants, but then again the conditions are extremely harsh.

smell me?

In response to discovering life:

in the early 90s NASA announced the presence of fossilized, microbial lifeforms on meteors and small asteroids that reached Earth's surface.

This went largely ignored for some reason?

Also, concerning with the discovery of life, these instruments are state-of-the-art and give us the ability to see farther out there, but do not confuse that with the capabilities of zooming into its surface like the Hubble pointing at our moon. Hopefully they won't be far enough so astronomers can detect what the planets atmosphere is composed of etc.

Cool post great topic,

Sad thing is its all rediscovery, I wonder what the old civilizations did to make the aliens hide away?

Originally posted by MagickWithoutTears
Cool post great topic,

Sad thing is its all rediscovery, I wonder what the old civilizations did to make the aliens hide away?

There is not a shred of evidence to support your opinion.

Anyway, I'm super excited for the James E. Webb telescope (I tried to abbreviate that, but JEW telescope just doesn't feel right) It's going to make Hubble look like the modern computer makes the windows 95 computer graphics.

As a loooonnngg time follower of Cassini/Huygens, I can only hope that there is life on one or some of Saturn's moons.

reply to post by hippomchippo


Totally agree with this statement. You just have to look at our own planet for the evidence to back up this hypothesis. When they found the super hot vents in the ocean which were teeming with life. Or bacteria found under 1350 metres of rock as this article states.

[edit on 7/8/2010 by 308]

But... What about all the stuff about TPTB hiding the truth about Nibiru!?!?

How can they suppress the existence of Nibiru with all these telescopes out there?!?!

And...and why are some being launched after 2012?!?!

Why would the PTB do that if the world is going to end?!?!

Doomsdayers nightmare these are, a bloody nightmare!





Ok all kidding aside, yes awesome times indeed!

reply to post by Chadwickus

Where did the doom & gloom come into this picture? Keep your whiny opinions to yourself or in the appropriate topics.

As for the OP, I'm right there w/ ya man..wish I could cryo-freeze myself for a couple of decades just to see the changes lol.

Originally posted by Ear-Responsible
Where did the doom & gloom come into this picture? Keep your whiny opinions to yourself or in the appropriate topics.

Hi there.

It's called having a joke.

My apologies good sir

2 lines for what?

reply to post by SaosinEngaged


Wow great thread.

I can't wait to be able to see the pics we're gonna get from these telescopes either, especially if they're going to be of nebulae. Pictures of nebulae are some of the most beautiful pictures I've seen of anything. My only wish would be able to fly out into space and see them in person
If only!