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Telescopes are one of the most incredible inventions in human history. They have been around for centuries now, and over the years they have gotten a lot of upgrades that have made it possible to see further into the universe, and with much greater clarity.
The concept is relatively simple, using mirrors and lenses to magnify various types of light so that things that are very far away can be seen. These lenses and mirrors are circular, and have been since the very beginning.
A group of researchers led by Professor Heidi Newberg at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, however, have proposed a new design that they claim would be able to better detect distant planets. Rather than using circular lenses, the new design would use a rectangular mirror that is 1 meter by 20 meters (3 feet by 66 feet), combined with another component that is operated independently and positioned well in front of the mirror itself.
The proposal was described in a paper that has been published in Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences.
So, why the new design? Well, it all comes down to what it would be used to look for.
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A planet that could be home to other lifeforms recognizable to us, or even be a second home for us if we develop interstellar travel, would have to have certain things in common with Earth. For example, there would need to be water, which means looking for it in the mid-infrared spectrum makes sense. Water gives off light in the wavelength of 10 microns.
Lots of telescopes can do that, however. The trick is being able to spot the planet without the light from its star overwhelming the telescope. Stars are a lot brighter than planets. Billions of times brighter in most cases, so it is a huge obstacle to find a way to filter out the light from the star without blocking the reflected light from the planet.
A way to more easily filter out that light, however, is to have something blocking it out. This has been done in the past by using a starshade spacecraft that is positioned in front of the telescope at a specific distance so that the telescope can see just the planet. Essentially, what happens is the starshade craft would be able to create an eclipse whenever it is needed so that researchers could spot the planet itself.
The Proba-3 million used this technique for more localized missions.
When looking for potential planets at a long distance away, this method could be just as successful. The two components of the telescope would need to be positioned properly based on where the star in question is located, but that can be calculated relatively easily.
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Once in place, the rectangular telescope is able to see where the planets will be while the light from the star is filtered out. Having a long and thin telescope also makes it much more practical when it comes to being launched. Setting up a long rectangular telescope in space is much easier than a massive circular one.
The team expects that if the telescope they propose is made and launched, they would be able to find at least 27 Earth-sized planets within 30 light-years of us, giving us lots of options for figuring out if live ever evolved anywhere else in galactic region.
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