Film Night May

We are running two  films tonight

We look forwards to seeing you there.

Exoplanets and Antarctica “Searching for exoplanets from Antarctica.” | BBC: The Sky at Night

The Sky at Night team report on the new scientific methods being used to detect exoplanets and how the winter darkness of Antarctica is critical to their success.

In our quest to find planets that aren’t too up close and personal with their parent stars, we must inevitably search for signals that are both long in duration and infrequent in occurrence. Our own Earth as viewed in transit by (probably) clever alien astronomers would cast a roughly eight hour-long shadows on the Sun, only once every 365 days. Signals like this need long, uninterrupted and clear nights, with very stable conditions. ASTEP enjoys all of these, simply by virtue of its location.

The Closest Planet Outside Our Solar System Is Almost Within Reach | Proxima Centauri

Since its discovery over 100 years ago, it has captivated astronomers the world over.  As if the paradoxes of this star weren’t alluring enough, scientists have recently discovered a seemingly Earth-like exoplanet in its orbit, opening conversations about interstellar colonisation.

It lies so despairingly close, yet would take generations to reach.  Newer techniques like solar sails or nuclear propulsion might make such a trip possible within a human lifetime.