Why Should We Care About The Discovery Of Thousands Of Planets?

There are lots of reasons to get excited about discoveries in space.

By Michael MarksJune 23, 2017 3:27 pm,

NASA’s Kepler space telescope has recently observed more than 4,000 planets in orbit around distant stars. Some of these planets appear to be a lot like Earth. In the wake of this discovery, many wonder why the finding new planets outside our own solar system matters. Syfywire.com’s Bad Astronomy blogger Phil Plait makes a case for why we should care.

“I don’t know how old you are but I’m a man of a certain age,” Plait says. “And I remember when we knew of only nine planets in the entire universe.”

The main reason why it’s important to take notice of thousands of potentially Earth-like planets orbiting stars outside of our solar system is that “we are not machines,” Plait says.

“We are multidimensional beings,” he says. “Capable of wonder and joy and are curious of the universe around us.”

What you’ll hear in this segment:

– What we do with these findings

– What makes this space news exciting for Plait

– How this discovery makes our solar system seem so unique

– Why we continue searching the universe

 

Written by Louise Rodriguez.