NASA's Deep Space Camera
Locates Host of 'Earths'
Published July 25, 2010
NewsCore
Scientists celebrated Sunday after finding more than 700 suspected
new planets -- including up to 140 similar in size to Earth -- in just
six weeks of using a powerful new space observatory.
Early results from NASA’s Kepler Mission, a small satellite observing
deep space, suggested planets like Earth were far more common than
previously thought.
Past discoveries suggested most planets outside our solar system were
gas giants such as Jupiter and Saturn -- but the new evidence tipped the
balance in favor of solid worlds.
Astronomers said the discovery meant the chances of eventually finding
truly Earth-like planets capable of sustaining life rose sharply.
NASA so far formally announced only five new exoplanets -- those outside
our solar system -- from the mission because its scientists were still
analyzing Kepler’s finds to confirm they are actually planets.
“The figures suggest our galaxy, the Milky Way [which has more than 100
billion stars] will contain 100 million habitable planets, and soon we
will be identifying the first of them,” said Dimitar Sasselov, professor
of astronomy at Harvard University and a scientist on the Kepler
Mission. "There is a lot more work we need to do with this, but the
statistical result is loud and clear, and it is that planets like our
own Earth are out there."
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