Old Spy Satellite Falling to Earth

Kepler observatory to release early findings this week

(NEWSER) - There's a roving eye watching deep space for signs that the truth—or at least other Earth-like planets or even life—is out there, and we're going to get a glimpse this week. The $600 million Kepler observatory is tracking a small piece of sky filled with some 4.5 million stars, and the potential "Goldilocks" planets lurking between them, the New York Times reports. “We will find Earth-size planets in habitable zones,” says one scientist. More»

(NEWSER) - NASA will launch its Kepler space telescope tomorrow on a 3-year mission to look for planets as habitable to life as Earth, the Christian Science Monitor reports. Kepler will use a sophisticated digital camera, 10 times more sensitive than consumer models, to survey distant stars for orbiting planets with just the right credentials. “It’s quite an exciting time to be alive,” one scientist said. More»

New 'Blue Marble' image focuses on eastern hemisphere

(NEWSER) - NASA released its 2012 version of the "Blue Marble" image of earth from space last month, and it went viral in a hurry. What to do for an encore? Show the other side. The first image focused on the western hemisphere. Citing huge demand, NASA this week released a companion image that focuses on the eastern hemisphere. It's a composite image, and Wired has the particulars of how this new shot came to be. More»

Agency releases new high-resolution image of Earth

(NEWSER) - Fans of NASA's "Blue Marble" images of Earth have a new gem to marvel at, notes Gizmodo . The agency has released on its Flickr stream what it calls the "most amazing, highest resolution image of Earth ever." It's a composite taken by a newly launched satellite. The first Blue Marble photograph, shot by the Apollo 17 crew in 1972, became famous around the world, notes Mark Memmott of NPR . NASA has added others since, and one shot in 2002 is especially familiar to iPhone users as a default background image. Head here for free downloads from NASA. More»

Kepler-22b averages 72 degrees and may have oceans

(NEWSER) - Finally, an Earth-like planet where the weather is nice enough for an occasional visit. Only, it's 600 light-years away. Today NASA announced the existence of Kepler-22b, the first-ever planet discovered in the "habitable zone" of a sun-like star—where temperatures are placid enough to allow for water, ScienceNOW reports. "It's a great gift," says one scientist. "We were very fortunate to find it." More»