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NEWS > SCIENCE > LATE TO THE PARTY; NEPTUNE FINALLY GOES AROUND THE SUN
LATE TO THE PARTY; NEPTUNE FINALLY GOES AROUND THE SUN
September 18 2010
Washington. D.C. – When we look at the night sky we see thousands of stars that make up our galaxy. That is a small slice of our neighbourhood however and a miniscule amount compared to the Universe as a whole. The little that we can see 
though sparks our imagination with what wonders might lie out there, whether it be alien life forms or some secret the Universe still holds, our small minds are awash with the limitless possibilities.
However there are still incredible sights to see in our own little solar system and things we have still not come close to understanding. Perhaps it is because so many of us know our neighbours so well that we take them for granted but it is in those bodies that surround us that we first find understanding of the true nature of the Universe. In particular the outer planets, the gas giants that act as our celestial guardians, that provide the most mystery and perhaps the greatest of answers. Now comes word that one of those giants, the blue planet of Neptune, has finally reached a milestone already so familiar to those of us living on the other blue planet, it is now within reaching distance of finally travelling around the sun for the first time since we first discovered it 164 years ago.
“We take a year for granted. It’s year, we use it to measure really inconsequential things and that removes the excitement that comes along with it. In doing that we forget that there are some planets out there that take a lot longer to travel around the sun,” said a spokesperson for the National Space Agency. ”Neptune has obviously travelled around the sun many, many times but this is the first time we have been able to observe such an event. Neptune existed before we discovered it and has travelled around the sun millions of times at this point, we just haven’t been around to witness it happening.”
The planet will complete its day sometimes next year. 
“Years for us are really just ways to measure how long we’ve been around and how long we might have left but it really is a big deal. Sure there’s been four and half billion of them, way more than Neptune, but they are still special and the slow orbit of the outer planets show what a great accomplishment it really is. It’s very heartening to see Neptune get around the sun, good for it,” said Scrape TV Science analyst Dr. Howard Poe. “Now we know that there are no living beings inhabiting the planet. Because it’s a gas giant, essentially all gas revolving around a solid core, life as we know it simply could not live on it in any form. Any life that did form in that environment would certainly not be like us and most assuredly would not be worrying about things like birthdays.”
Science generally agrees that no life exists on Neptune.
“Keep in mind as well that these being would not be super old. They would likely age at the same rate as us but they would measure it differently. People wouldn’t be living thousands of Earth years, they would still be living 80 years but they wouldn’t measure it by the sun as we do,” continued Poe. “That is a convention of man and would not necessarily be held to by alien species no matter their composition. Evolving in that environment they would be subject to a different set of rules and a different way of thinking that would likely not include the type of calendars we use.”
Travelling to Neptune would also not increase life expectancy.
Anna Phillips, Science Correspondent
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