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Milky Way Has 17B Planets the Size of Ours

And that's a conservative estimate

(Newser) - Before we start feeling too special about our home planet, scientists have a message: There are at least 17 billion planets the size of Earth in the Milky Way alone, Space.com reports. About 17% of our galaxy's stars have Earth-size exoplanets closely orbiting them—so 100 billion stars...

Martian Rock Found in Sahara Thrills Experts

2B-year-old stone holds more water than others

(Newser) - After a rock from Mars was discovered in the Sahara desert, scientists investigated it for a year—and they're fascinated by what they've learned. At an estimated two billion years old, the rock is older than most Martian meteorites and holds more water, the AP reports. And it...

Milky Way: Home to 100B+ Planets
 Milky Way: Home to 
 100B+ Planets 
new study
Jan 3, 2013 1:07 PM CST

Milky Way: Home to 100B+ Planets

New study comes up with conservative estimate

(Newser) - Scientists have done a sort of "cosmic census," completing a new study that finds the Milky Way galaxy is home to 100 billion alien planets—and maybe even many more than that. "It's a staggering number, if you think about it," says the lead author....

Prediction: We'll Discover 1st 'Earth Twin' in 2013

With 50B planets in Milky Way, astronomers think big discovery looms

(Newser) - With more than 800 exoplanets identified since 1995, many astronomers are predicting that 2013 will be the year that the first truly Earth-like planet is spotted, reports Space . Scientists have gotten ever closer to finding an alien Earth in recent years, identifying several in the right temperature range and others...

Massive Black Hole Stumps Scientists

Its mass equals 17B suns, turning previous theory on its head

(Newser) - An enormous, newly discovered black hole has scientists questioning what they thought they knew about black holes to begin with. Usually, supermassive black holes make up about 0.1% of the mass of the stars at a galaxy's center, known as a stellar bulge. But in this case, the...

Astronomers Spot Oldest Galaxy Yet

It's 13.3 billion years old, nearly as old as the universe

(Newser) - Our universe is a mind-boggling 13.7 billion years old, and now astronomers say they have found a galaxy that has been around since the universe was a spry 420 million years old, reports LiveScience . Called MACS0647-JD, the 13.3-billion-year-old galaxy is tiny, cosmically speaking, just 600 light years wide...

Rover's Latest Find: Rock Type Not Seen Before on Mars

Although it's not that unusual on Earth

(Newser) - Curiosity has identified a type of rock that no rover had previously spotted on Mars. It has the same chemical composition as rocks relatively common on Earth, found in rift zones like Hawaii's volcanoes, Wired reports. They develop in high-pressure conditions, often near water, though it's unclear if...

Mars Rover Finds 'Bright Object'

Curiosity makes first scoop of planet's surface

(Newser) - The Curiosity rover has conducted its first scoop of Mars' surface—and found an unidentified "bright object," the AP reports. The rover won't make another scoop until NASA officials can deduce what the thing is. It could just be a piece of the rover itself. Curiosity has...

SpaceX Rockets Into History—Again

1st cargo delivery set to arrive at ISS Wednesday

(Newser) - It was quite the night for privately owned SpaceX: For the first time, a US-built, robotic spacecraft is on its way to the International Space Station to deliver cargo. The launch follows a successful May test flight to the ISS. SpaceX's Dragon capsule took off from Cape Canaveral at...

Comet Far Brighter Than Moon on Its Way

ISON should be easy to spot in daylight

(Newser) - Peer at the night sky just over a year from now, and you may spot a comet that's 15 times brighter than the moon. Comet ISON, due to be at its brightest on Nov. 28, 2013, will be so luminous that you should be able to see it in...

Hubble 'Travels' Back 13.2B Years

'Time-tunnel' composite bares space 'just' after Big Bang

(Newser) - An out-of-this-world composite photo of Hubble Space Telescope shots peers back to a time a "mere" 450 million years after the Big Bang. Dubbed the eXtreme Deep Field, or XDF, the photograph—made up of 2,000 snaps taken by the Hubble over 10 years—reveals nearly 5,500...

India: We'll Launch a Mars Mission Next Year

$82M plan will send spacecraft to orbit planet

(Newser) - Look out, Curiosity : India is right behind you. The country is planning to send an unmanned spacecraft to orbit Mars next year, its prime minister announced today. "This spaceship to Mars will be a huge step for us in the area of science and technology," Manmohan Singh said...

NASA's 2-Year Hunt for Black Holes Starts Today

NASA's NuStar scheduled to launch from South Pacific

(Newser) - Barring any mishaps, a refrigerator-size telescope will begin its two-year quest to track down black holes today. The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuStar) is set to rocket into space from an island located between Hawaii and Australia, reports the AP . Once it gets some 350 miles above Earth, it will...

What We Can Learn From Venus' Transit

Phenomenon could help us identify exoplanets

(Newser) - Astronomers have identified some 2,000 possible far-off worlds called exoplanets, and today could mark a milestone in the quest to confirm their findings. The transit of Venus across the sun could help us learn about the changes in light caused by a planet passing its star—and this knowledge...

Firm Plans Reality Show —on Mars

4 visitors will reach planet by 2023, according to Mars One's plan

(Newser) - Combine a Dutch Nobelist, the co-creator of Big Brother, and a Mars-obsessed company, and what do you get? A reality show that follows the creation of the first human colony on Mars, of course. Mars One , as the company is called, plans to send four people to the planet by...

Venus to Cross Sun for Last Time This Century

 Venus to Cross 
 Sun for Last Time 
 This Century 
in case you missed it
Jun 2, 2012 12:43 PM CDT

Venus to Cross Sun for Last Time This Century

Transit occurs Tuesday; next one in 2117

(Newser) - This Tuesday, Venus will move between the Earth and the sun—and you may want to catch it now, because you probably won't be around when it happens again in 2117. The event will be visible throughout the US shortly before sunset. On the East Coast, you'll want...

Check Out Last Night's Supermoon

Biggest full moon of the year

(Newser) - Last night brought this year's "supermoon," the point in which the moon is closest to the Earth in its orbit. The moon was some 15,300 miles closer to us than usual, making it look about 14% bigger, an expert tells the AP . Unfortunately, "you'd...

Five-Rocket NASA Mission Lights Up Sky

Science mission finally gets green light

(Newser) - After almost two weeks of delays, NASA finally launched its ATREX experiment this morning, lighting up the early morning sky as five rockets hurtled into the air. The rockets released chemicals into the air to create artificial glowing clouds at the edge of space, MSNBC reports. Those clouds will help...

Russia Plans Moonwalk by 2030

Leaked documents reveal deadline

(Newser) - Russia will finally send a human to the moon. At least it's planning to—by 2030, according to a leaked document from Roskosmos, the Russian Space agency. The Russians have intermittently laid forth enthusiastic goals for space exploration in recent years, reports the Telegraph , but never with a set...

For Rent: Slightly Used Space Shuttle Launchpad

Kennedy Space Center is looking for tenants

(Newser) - Wondering where to park your space shuttle? Consider Cape Canaveral's Kennedy Space Center. "We’re putting out the word officially and unofficially that Kennedy Space Center is open for business," says a chief architect at the facility. "I have a lot of facilities that we, NASA,...

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