Reflection on AstronomyCast Episode 202

This episode of Astronomy Cast focused on the exoplanets discovered in the Gliese 581 star system. The hosts mentioned that while we have determined that there is a planet inside Gliese 581's habitable zone, it is frustrating that we cannot know more about it. I have to say that I share in this sentiment. The celestial equator of Gliese 581 does not point towards us, so we can never see the planets that orbit the star transit it. Therefore, we cannot know anything regarding the atmosphere of Gliese 581g, the planet in the habitable zone (or any of the others, for that matter), or even its size. We can only tell that it exists and what its (approximate) mass is, and it could be decades before we are able to glean any more information about the planet. This is no doubt a very frustrating reality for anyone, like myself, who is interested in exoplanets and the search for extraterrestrial life. However, the hosts of the show also mentioned that the important thing to remember about this discovery is that it showcases our potential to find exoplanets like Gliese 581g. Additionally, the discovery of so many planets in the Gliese 581 system could also indicate that large star systems like our own are not as rare as we thought. It's those two ideas that really make these recent developments exciting, even if we can't know a whole lot about the actual planets we've discovered already.