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Five billion years of solitude : the search for life among the stars / Lee Billings.

by Billings, Lee,

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Life on other planets.

Extrasolar planets.

9781617230066 (hc.)

1617230065 (hc.)

vii, 294 pages ; 24 cm.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 269-279) and index.

Looking for longevity -- Drake's orchids -- A fractured empire -- The worth of a world -- After the gold rush -- The big picture -- Out of equilibrium -- Aberrations of the light -- The order of the null -- Into the barren lands.

"For 4.6 billion years our living planet has been alone in a vast and silent universe. But soon, Earth's isolation could come to an end. Over the past two decades, astronomers have discovered thousands of planets orbiting other stars. Some of these exoplanets may be mirror images of our own world. And more are being found all the time. Yet as the pace of discovery quickens, an answer to the universe's greatest riddle still remains just out of reach: Is the great silence and emptiness of the cosmos a sign that we and our world are somehow singular, special, and profoundly alone, or does it just mean that we’re looking for life in all the wrong places? As star-gazing scientists come closer to learning the truth, their insights are proving ever more crucial to understanding life's intricate mysteries and possibilities right here on Earth. Science journalist Lee Billings explores the past and future of the "exoplanet boom" through in-depth reporting and interviews with the astronomers and planetary scientists at its forefront. He recounts the stories behind their world-changing discoveries and captures the pivotal moments that drove them forward in their historic search for the first habitable planets beyond our solar system"--Provided by publisher.

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