So Earth 2 has now been found

Yes, that's a DC reference.

Now I wasn't actually going to bother commenting on this new and exciting discovery, as it's one I think everyone realises the significance of. But then today the guy at the supermarket checkout mentioned it to me and mentioned that he considered it all a bit useless.

"It's so far away we'll never get there"

He said. Obviously, I pointed out to him that part of the excitement is that this is potential proof that we're not alone in this universe. I also went on to explain that it's unwise to rule out distances as inaccessible based solely on our current understanding of our technology. After all it was once widely believed that (a) The earth was flat (b) Man would never be able to fly (c) The sound barrier was unbreakable (d) Space travel was impossible.

He was so excited that he nearly forgot to give me my thirteen pence of change. It would have been worth it.