The future looks bright for the Earth – but not in the way we’d hoped. The slim chance our planet will survive when the Sun begins its death throes has been ruled out.
In a few billion years, the Sun will fuse the last of its hydrogen into helium, turn into a red giant and expand to 250 times its current size. At first, the Sun’s loss of mass will loosen its gravitational pull on Earth, which will allow the planet to migrate to a wider orbit about 7.6 billion years from now.
This process has led some to speculate that the Earth might escape destruction – but survival now seems impossible, says Peter Schröder of the University of Guanajuato in Mexico and Robert Smith of the University of Sussex in the UK.
They created the most detailed model to date of the Sun’s transition to a red giant, based on observations of six nearby red giant stars. Sure enough, they found that Earth’s orbit will widen at first. But Earth will also induce a “tidal bulge” on the Sun’s surface, with its own gravitational pull. The bulge will lag just behind the Earth in its orbit, slowing it down enough to drag it to a fiery demise.
There is one last hope for anybody still living on Earth, the researchers say. In the past, some have suggested that Earth’s orbit could be tweaked by arranging the fly-by of a nearby asteroid to tug at it. This method could potentially maintain Earth’s speed enough to keep it in a widening orbit, they say.
Journal reference: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2966.2008.13022.x)
By Jeff Dionne
Fri Feb 22 19:19:24 GMT 2008
Why do we spend money on reseach like this, which would not effect anyone, and cannot even be proven.By Dan
Fri Feb 22 20:01:59 GMT 2008
I suppose someone on the Titanic could have said, "Why do we spend money on iceberg reseach, which would not effect anyone, and cannot even be proven. We should spend time on money accually improving life for the passengers of the Titanic!"By Jeff Dionne
Mon Feb 25 21:45:36 GMT 2008
What does the Titanic (sunkin boat) and an iceburg(something real!) have anything to do with 7 billion years into a Sci-fi future?By Anon
Tue Feb 26 03:03:29 GMT 2008
Because earth is like a ship we are all on?By Ed Tarbster
Wed Feb 27 14:54:42 GMT 2008
It's a SUNKEN ship and it's an analogy, likening one thing to another to prove a point ^__^ I think it's an interesting story due to the fact that one day, a long time from now our sun will burn out causing it to become a red giant. Hopefully we'll have colonised other solar systems or inhabitable planets by then, but if not, we're boned (well, whatever creatures, if any, that live on earth will be boned.) Good luck to them. >__<
By Shaun Steenkamp
Fri Feb 22 21:01:58 GMT 2008
Ok, imagine for a moment it's a 1000 years in the future, and the human race is starting to colonise planets in other star systems. Wouldn't you expect this research to help in deciding whether or not a certain planet will survive that stars demise which might be on the order of a million years instead of a few billion? (Take into account the cost of colonisation, a planet will be a huge investment, you'll need to know if it will survive).By Jeff Dionne
Mon Feb 25 21:50:20 GMT 2008
In a 1000 years nothing we are doing now is going to matter much.By Windy
Sat Feb 23 16:58:34 GMT 2008
Because in the process of studying the sun's demise, they are also learning more about the sun and how it behaves in its death throes.By Luis Figo
Tue Apr 01 04:10:59 BST 2008
Its amazing to know the earth, the universe and understand astronomy... It is not science fiction it is true... The earth is going to desapear when the sun becomes a red gigant.... Me you or anybody we all are going to die. But the knowlege to whats is really going to happen is a good knowledge... The article is amazing!By Lindsay
Fri Feb 22 20:33:56 GMT 2008
Come now - What has happened to wonder and curiosity? I am just grateful to live in a society where people can explore and wonder and find out things!By Darkblak
Fri Feb 22 20:44:22 GMT 2008
At least two university researchers actually spent time, and no doubt grant money, to come up with a no-brainer conclusion about something that won't happen for 7.6 BILLION YEARS?? Well, congratulations!By Lunatic Fringe
Fri Feb 22 21:54:09 GMT 2008
A good angle for you would be - What happens to the moon? You should go for it!By James
Tue Mar 04 02:15:05 GMT 2008
People may thinks it is pointless research, but as far i can see knowledge in one field brings advancement in other fields. Thats why you have non stick frypan and easy wash paint, because of NASA.All comments should respect the New Scientist House Rules. If you think a particular comment breaks these rules then please use the "Report" link in that comment to report it to us.
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