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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: extrasolar planets

extrasolar planets stories: 7 news summaries

 32 New Exoplanets Discovered 

New finds signal that cosmos harbors wealth of planets

Oct 20, 09 3:23 AM CDT
(Newser) - European astronomers have discovered 32 new planets in other solar systems, bringing the total of known exoplanets to over 400. The planets—which range in size from five times the size of Earth to five times the size of Jupiter—were found circling a variety of stars. The new discoveries... More »

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planet • Milky Way • exoplanet • galaxy • extrasolar planets • observatory

(Newser) - The sun may be heading for one of its dimmest periods in history, but that doesn't mean the big star is joining the battle against global warming, according to scientists. The sun hit a 100-year low in sunspot activity last year, reports the Telegraph. More »

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climate change • global warming • space • Earth • sun • extrasolar planets • excessive heat • sunspots • solar activity

If Another Earth Is Out There, Kepler Will Find it

NASA telescope designed to look for life-sustaining planets

Feb 11, 09 2:18 PM CST
(Newser) - If there's truly no place like home, then NASA's new Kepler mission will help scientists prove it. The space telescope, set to launch March 5, will scan the skies for planets with the approximate size and temperature range of Earth. Matches could be candidates for extraterrestrial life; if Kepler finds... More »

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NASA • planet • SETI • extrasolar planets • Kepler spacecraft • space telescope

 Scientists Snap First  
 Images of New Planets 

Three-planet, one-planet systems caught on camera

Nov 13, 08 3:55 PM CST
(Newser) - Scientists have photographed planets outside our solar system for the first time, Space.com reports. One team captured images of a three-planet system orbiting a star in the Pegasus constellation, while another group snapped a planet rotating around the star Fomalhaut. The planets can't support life or little green men,... More »

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astronomy • science • space • extrasolar planets

 Discoveries
 Boost Hope
 for Alien Life 

New forms of extreme bacteria fuel hope for extraterrestrial life

Jul 20, 08 12:47 PM CDT
(Newser) - Humans have always wondered about the possibility of alien life somewhere out there. And while scientists seem to agree that the discovery of extraterrestrials will not happen soon, growing numbers are convinced it will happen. The search is being fueled in part by recent discoveries of strange new life forms... More »

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NASA • space • bacteria • extraterrestrial life • aliens • astrophysics • extrasolar planets • Mars rover

Scientists Find Planets Out of This World

Discoveries of, info about new heavenly bodies pour into NASA

Mar 24, 08 9:30 AM CDT
(Newser) - Humans took centuries to discover the other planets in the solar system, but in the 13 years since the first additional planet was identified, planetary scientists have found 277 more worlds orbiting other suns. And those extrasolar planets are just the confirmed ones—many more are suspected, and excitement among... More »

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NASA • planet • MIT • space • extrasolar planets • JPL • Joint Propulsion Laboratory

 Methane Found on Far-off Planet

Compound, crucial ingredient in early-life chemistry, detected 63 light years away

Mar 19, 08 4:59 PM CDT
(Newser) - Methane, one of the simplest compounds known to play a role in the chemical genesis of life, was discovered for the first time to exist on a planet outside Earth’s solar system, the BBC reports. The planet, designated HD 189733b, is 63 light years away and also contains water,... More »

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Hubble • space • methane • extraterrestrial life • Spitzer orbiting telescope • carbon • Jupiter • extrasolar planets • gas giant • prebiotic chemicals • organic compounds

7 Stories


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