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The debate on whether or not Osiris has water in its atmosphere continues

A new analysis again suggests that gas giant HD209458b currently has water in its atmosphere.  The planet -- nicknamed Osiris -- is 150 light years away from Earth, located in the Pegasus constellation.  The planet was first detected in late November 1999, with the help of astronomical spectroscopy.  

The hot, Jupiter-like gaseous planet has been the target of research once scientists believed water could be located somewhere on the planet.  Three teams of scientists previously believed there could be water in the planet's atmosphere, but those ideas were questioned after the NASA Spitzer Space Telescope was unable to provide evidence.

Travis Bartman, an astronomer working at Lowell Observatory, believes he has discovered the missing water after analyzing the light from a star when it passes through HD209458b's atmosphere.

Barman and researchers from Harvard University measured the light coming from Osiris as it reached the furthest part of the 3.5-day orbit it makes around the star.  With the help of the Hubble Space Telescope, it was possible to further study water absorption in the planet's atmosphere.  Each time the planet passes its parent star, it is possible to analyze how the atmosphere absorbs light passing from the star through the atmosphere.    

Scientists will continue to study and conduct research to either confirm or deny Barman's research.

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RE: Will that help?
By Etsp on 4/12/2007 5:21:56 PM , Rating: 2
Are you confusing Jupiter's gravity with the gravity of a black hole? Cause if I remember correctly, Jupiter's gravity wouldn't do that to you.


RE: Will that help?
By Seemonkeyscanfly on 4/12/2007 5:44:35 PM , Rating: 2
Someone correct me if I'm wrong. The ratio x lbs to x + bls I no is wrong:
The Gravity on Jupiter is something like 1,500 to one (guessing but I know it up there). So, a 200 lbs man becomes 300,000 lbs. Your bones can not even handle a bite of 2,400 lbs from a pit bull, and so they break...So at 300,000 lbs you become like a liquid and are pulled as close to the ground as possible, which spreads your body all over the place, yuk.. In a black hole you are compacted together into a really, really, really small dot of space not a good thing if you are claustrophobic, or so one theory goes.


RE: Will that help?
By PlasmaBomb on 4/12/2007 6:23:04 PM , Rating: 2
Can I correct you?
If a man weighs 200lb (~91 kg) on the surface of the earth his mass would be ~91/9.81 = 9.267 kg. So assuming that he was on a spacecraft suitably equipped to fly along on the surface of Jupiter (~71,000 km from Jupiters’ core), the same man would weigh 9.267*24.79 = 229.73 kg or 505.4 lb, so whilst moving around would be an effort, he would be far from 1/10 mm thick (at least due to the gravity).
When pit bulls bite they apply a pressure of over 2000 psi which is very different to 2400 lb.
If you were to fall into a black hole you would end up as a very long string (think spaghetti) because of the massively different tidal forces on your head and feet.
If you were to fall into a black hole you would end up as a very long string (think spaghetti) because of the massively different tidal forces on your head and feet.


RE: Will that help?
By PlasmaBomb on 4/12/2007 6:24:04 PM , Rating: 2
Doh ignore the double last sentence


RE: Will that help?
By oTAL on 4/13/2007 10:11:46 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
If a man weighs 200lb (~91 kg) on the surface of the earth his mass would be ~91/9.81 = 9.267 kg.


I'm not sure about the rest of your post but this line was stupid enough for me (or maybe you're tired and you made a mistake).
Do you the difference between mass and weight? Mass is an absolute concept and you are confusing Kg with Newtons. You probably meant that if someone weighs 91KgF = ~910N, then his mass would be (pretty much anywhere) 91Kg.
The rest of your post kind of makes a good argument about the distance from the center of mass of a given object which is important when discussing gravitational pull.


RE: Will that help?
By plinden on 4/12/2007 7:22:38 PM , Rating: 2
Not quite - from Jupiter's wikipedia entry "... the equatorial surface gravity of 24.79 m/s2 ..." (m is meters, not miles). If you don't accept the accuracy of Wikipedia, try http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/solar/j...

That's roughly 2.5g (Earth's surface gravity is 9.8m/s2, so a 200lb-on-earth man would weigh 500lb. Heavy, but considering the large numbers of large Americans I see every day, it's not extreme.


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