People will fund fake project but not real science project

[MrOmnos]

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/projectblue/project-blue-a-space-telescope-to-photograph-anoth?utm_medium=redp

[ataradov]

Seems unlikely that you can launch anything useful for $1,000,000. And even if you do, and find another planet, so what? NASA does plenty of this already, but there no real finite point in all of it. One thing finding one planet is not going to help anything, it has to be an ongoing effort, which you can't fund through KS.

Thanks to recent breakthroughs, the technology now exists to capture a direct image of an Earth-like planet outside our solar system. That's what we aim to do.

What "breakthroughs"? Citation is clearly needed here. I doubt there is an actual technology to take pictures like this.

[MrOmnos]

Seems unlikely that you can launch anything useful for $1,000,000. And even if you do, and find another planet, so what? NASA does plenty of this already, but there no real finite point in all of it. One thing finding one planet is not going to help anything, it has to be an ongoing effort, which you can't fund through KS.

Thanks to recent breakthroughs, the technology now exists to capture a direct image of an Earth-like planet outside our solar system. That's what we aim to do.

What "breakthroughs"? Citation is clearly needed here. I doubt there is an actual technology to take pictures like this.

It's not about the benefits of the project, it about the what people think is important. And 1 million is probably what they are asking from the people, they might have other donors. There are lot of useless projects on KS that get funded, a science project should at least go halfway. 

[ataradov]

There are lot of useless projects on KS that get funded, a science project should at least go halfway. 

Usefulnesses is not absolute. I like science and space exploration, but I personally think that this project is useless. They did not convince me that their contribution is significant in any way.

Plus that unsubstantiated quote about the sensor makes me think that the whole thing is at least misguided, if not outright scam. I see no evidence of such sensor existence or even physical feasibility.

[ez24]

Question:

If they do not reach their goal (1 million) do current supporters (200k) get charged?

Could it be Bob is behind this one?

[ataradov]

If they do not reach their goal (1 million) do current supporters (200k) get charged?

This project will only be funded if at least $1,000,000 is pledged by Tue, Dec 20 2016 11:59 PM PST.

[ez24]

This project will only be funded if at least $1,000,000 is pledged by Tue, Dec 20 2016 11:59 PM PST.

[/quote]

ataradov do you have 800k to see this gets funded? 

[ataradov]

ataradov do you have 800k to see this gets funded? 

If I had, I would see that it does not. Because the more I look at it, the less sense it makes.

[ez24]

Unusual proximity: At only 4.37 light years distance, Alpha Centauri is the closest star system to us, and contains not just one, but two stars similar to our Sun. The next Sun-like star is located 2.5x further away and would require a telescope 2.5 times larger in size.

We need some mathematicians here.  But once I heard something along these lines and it was 1500 years to get a signal there and back and that was a radio signal.  So this one cannot be proved wrong for 1500 years.  The scammers are getting good.

FYI some scientists said it will be 1500 years until we hear from alien life - bummer.

[ataradov]

They are building a telescope, no need to send any signals, they just want to observe what is there (or rather was there some time ago). There is no problem with that.

I have a big problem with the claim that they can obtain direct optical image of a planet that remote.

[ar__systems]

I have a big problem with the claim that they can obtain direct optical image of a planet that remote.

Of course they can't. The only way planets are discovered are by slight variation of brightness of their stars when the planet comes in front of the star.

[Bud]

If you pledge $25K don't forget to add $8 for premium T-shirt. Cm'on, you can't be that cheap to wear a standard one.

[DJohn]

The only way planets are discovered are by slight variation of brightness of their stars when the planet comes in front of the star.

There are a number of methods of detecting exoplanets.  Transits are only one.  The first discoveries were made, if I'm remembering correctly, by measuring the movement of the star as it orbited the centre of gravity of the star/planet system.

Direct imaging is another method.  And as impossible as it may sound, it has been done.

Observing an earth-like planet is an ambitious goal.  I don't have the knowledge and experience to judge whether it's possible.  But I do know that you shouldn't underestimate a determined experimental physicist.  They're capable of some amazing things.

They're obviously not going to launch anything for that price, but they don't claim that they will: "We’ve set an initial Kickstarter goal of $1 million to fund crucial analysis, design, and simulations that form the foundation of the mission".

[dan3460]

I read something about this or a very similar project. The idea is to create a camera with several modern camera sensors that, with the appropriate lenses, will look at the same region where Alpha century is located. They supposedly will make this as small as possible and pay to get it lunched into space. Cutting the red tape should make this possible, working out there that is a different question.
Most of the expense that institutions, such as Nasa have, is the testing and re-testing of the equipment to ensure that it will work in space. All this also makes that projects, such as Hubble, end up being lunched with 8 or 10 year old technology, and even then did not work at first.

My point is, I don't think that private enterprises will ever get enough money to successfully lunch a project like this and have working successfully.