Space Scout

Kepler's three and a half year mission is to find "other Earths" in the "habitable zone" of the Milky Way. According to NASA, it is powerful enough to "detect someone in a small town turning off a porch light at night" from space. Although it is not tasked with finding signs of life, Kepler will orbit the sun watching for "dimming or winks in the stellar brightness that might be caused by the orbiting planets" near the Cygnus and Lyra constellations. Scientists expect to find other planets orbiting the stars, but water-bearing planets might mean we're not unique, and possibly not alone.

Story suggested by Victor Martinez.

Image: "Trinary Sunset" by Mus on Flickr via Creative Commons licensing.