| It is getting to the point where planets are being | | | | thousands of star clusters between the two. The |
| found everywhere. Fifty here, fifty there, well | | | | third closest galaxy to us, at about 200,000 light |
| maybe I am exaggerating a little, but there are a lot | | | | years, is the Small Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf galaxy. |
| of planets out there. Now that we know for sure | | | | Again this galaxy is being absorbed by our galaxy. |
| that planets exist outside our own solar system, | | | | Gas is being created by dying stars and so are star |
| maybe we should stop counting the ones that we | | | | clusters, as they are being pulled away from the |
| find. Why do I say this? Our galaxy is only one of | | | | Small Magellanic Cloud. There is also a debris trail that |
| billions, or even more. It contains over | | | | stretches from both of these galaxies into our own. |
| 100,000,000,000 stars. If only one star in three has | | | | This is another galaxy that can only be seen from |
| planets around it and lets say the average amount of | | | | the southern hemisphere. Thanks to these two |
| planets is 4, we are looking at a heck of a lot of | | | | galaxies, our own is getting bigger. Both of the |
| planets my friends. That is roughly 133,333,333,333 | | | | Magellanic Cloud galaxies are considered to be |
| planets in only our own galaxy. If only one planet of | | | | primitive and neither is said to have as many heavy |
| these in 1,000 has life, we are looking at 13,333,333 | | | | elements as our own galaxy. The chances of finding |
| planets containing life. If only 1 in 1,000 of these has | | | | planets with life in the two Magellanic Cloud galaxies |
| intelligent life, we are look at 13,333 planets in our | | | | are much slimmer than in our own or the Andromeda |
| galaxy that contain intelligent life. Now you know why | | | | galaxy. This is because there are a lot of very young |
| we are searching for signals from planets with | | | | stars in them, some being as young as only twelve |
| intelligent life, it is because the numbers favor the | | | | million years old. This doesn't give much time, if any, |
| chances of it being there. Our world can't be that | | | | for planetary development. |
| special that we are the only intelligent beings in the | | | | Our Milky Way is about 90,000 light years in diameter |
| galaxy. It would be very closed minded of us to | | | | and has a circumference of about 270,000 light years. |
| believe this. Even if we take the bible as a literal | | | | It is disk shaped and is about 2,400 light years thick. |
| interpretation of God's word, I don't think there is | | | | None of these figures are exact and can be off by |
| anything in there that prohibits life in other places | | | | as much as 50,000 light years, no one knows for |
| besides Earth. Maybe I will receive an argument on | | | | sure. Our galaxy is part of a group of galaxies known |
| this, but this is what I believe. | | | | as the local group. This group is in itself part of the |
| The Andromeda galaxy is our neighbor galaxy. It is | | | | Virgo Supercluster. Other dwarf galaxies that orbit |
| classified as M31. The M stands for Messier Object. | | | | our Milky Way are Canis Major, Sagittarius, Ursa |
| Charles Messier was a French astronomer that lived | | | | Minor, Sculptor, Sextans, Fomax and Leo. Some are |
| from 1730 to 1817. He complied a list of objects that | | | | so small that they are only 500 light years across. |
| were difficult to tell from comets. Of course the | | | | These tiny galaxies would be Carina, Draco and Leo |
| telescopes then were not as good as the ones | | | | II, all dwarfs. It is thought that there might be more |
| today and today this isn't a problem. There are 110 | | | | of these galaxies orbiting us that have much less |
| of these objects. Andromeda is a larger galaxy than | | | | mass and therefore are going undetected for the |
| our own. It is pretty near us in cosmic terms and is | | | | moment. It is felt that they might be mostly gas and |
| headed for a collision with the Milky Way. Don't | | | | dust. There is a ripple effect at the southern edge of |
| worry though, it will take about 4 billion years before | | | | our galaxy and this is thought to be caused by the |
| this happens. Even when it does happen there is not | | | | Magellanic Clouds as they orbit us. The speed of the |
| much chance of being smashed into. The stars are | | | | approaching Andromeda Galaxy is about 100 to 140 |
| just too far apart. NASA describes it this way, | | | | kilometers per second. That is roughly 67 to 93 miles |
| picture two grains of sand separated by a football | | | | per second. No one is quite sure how fast our galaxy |
| field. That is about the distance of the stars from | | | | is traveling. There have been estimates that range |
| each other in each galaxy. When the two galaxies do | | | | form 100 km to 1,000 km. per second. That is |
| meet, they will pass into each other at the speed of | | | | somewhere between 67 to to 667 miles per second |
| about 1,000,000 mph, Ouch! Some day the Milky | | | | and even this might be wrong. |
| Way and Andromeda galaxies will be one. The main | | | | Some of the recently found planets from outside our |
| problem with the two galaxies passing into each | | | | solar system include one that was discovered orbiting |
| other is the gas and debris that each contain. Recent | | | | a star that was considered quite normal. The planet is |
| findings indicate that the Andromeda Galaxy contains | | | | about 5.5 times the size of the Earth. It is further |
| over a trillion stars, which is far more than the Milky | | | | away from its sun than we are from ours. The star it |
| Way, but here is the kicker, they have also found | | | | orbits is 28,000 light years away and the planet is |
| that the Milky Way is more massive, due to more | | | | thought to be rocky. The star it orbits is a red dwarf. |
| dark matter being present. Dark matter is the matter | | | | That means it is about 50 times less powerful than |
| that we can't see. It is estimated that 90% of the | | | | our sun, but is the most common type of star in the |
| universe is made of it. Because of all this dark matter | | | | universe. Some Earth sized planets have been |
| in our own galaxy, it would have been interesting to | | | | detected, but these were only orbiting dying neutron |
| see how this effects the collision between the two | | | | stars. A neutron star is a star that comes from a |
| galaxies. | | | | supernova explosion. It is VERY dense. You are |
| Forgetting the collision for a second, the potential for | | | | talking about a star that is only about 10 km(about |
| planets in the Andromeda Galaxy is even far greater | | | | 6.5 miles) in radius, yet has a mass about 1.5 times |
| than our own, because of the number of stars in | | | | that of our sun, which has a radius of 695,000 km |
| that galaxy. Scientists believe that the same physics | | | | (about 463,333 miles). It is believed that any planet |
| is in effect in all galaxies and throughout the universe. | | | | orbiting a sun of this type MUST be a dead world. |
| I wonder if this could be a wrong assumption, even | | | | Another planet was found at a distance of about 20 |
| in small ways? For example, what if there was a | | | | light years. It is rotating around a red sun that is |
| planet where things didn't work quite the same. For | | | | about 1.5 times the size of our sun. The planet is |
| example, we are used to seeing things fall down in a | | | | considered to be very Earth like and its discovery |
| straight line. What if there was a planet where there | | | | was announced in April, 2007 by a team of European |
| was similar gravity to our own, but for some | | | | astronomers. There is evidence to suggest oceans. |
| unknown reason, things that fell hit the planet on an | | | | The diameter is 12,000 miles and its mass is 5 times |
| angle? With so many different planets and so many | | | | that of Earth. Some scientists are already saying that |
| different compositions, things could be quite different | | | | this planet might just have the best chance for life |
| than what we are used to, even if it didn't violate | | | | so far. I believe that this statement is far too |
| the physical laws. Would it be possible to find a | | | | premature. The planet is located in Libra. |
| galaxy that had no planets or that had at least 5 or 6 | | | | Have you ever wondered why we are finding planets |
| planets for every star? These are extreme cases, | | | | that are usually huge? The answer is simple, it is hard |
| but you just can't rule anything out when you are | | | | to find planets because their suns block out their light. |
| talking about the unknown. | | | | The bigger the planet the more light it gives off and |
| Our own galaxy has satellite galaxies circling around it, | | | | the easier it is to find, not that finding planets is easy. |
| like planets orbiting the sun. Two of these galaxies | | | | Will we find a planet that has life on it? It seems that |
| are the Small Magellanic Cloud and the Large | | | | the universe has a surprise for us. That surprise is |
| Magellanic Cloud. The nearest galaxy to our own was | | | | that there are many planets out there and many are |
| thought to be the Large Magellanic Cloud, at 163,000 | | | | similar to our own world. There may be millions and |
| light years away. In 1994 it was discovered that the | | | | billions of societies waiting for us, or trying to avoid |
| he Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy was closer at | | | | us, whatever the case may be. |
| only about 80,000 light years. The Magellanic Cloud | | | | Copyright © 2007 by About Facts Net and its |
| galaxy is like a blob of stars. It can only be seen in | | | | licensors. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to |
| the southern hemisphere. This galaxy is disintegrating | | | | reproduce this article if no changes are made and all |
| because we are absorbing it. The gradational tug of | | | | links, if any, remain intact. |
| war between this galaxy and our own is creating | | | | |