Moons, Solar Origins, and a Crash that Cracked the World (Maybe)
Scientists seeking niches for life in the universe have a new tool, we've finding stars that shared our sun's origin, and have more clues about Earth's early years.... A Hypothetical Habitable Moon (From Lucianomendez, via Wikimedia Commons, used w/o permission. (" Artist's impression of a hypothetical habitable moon of Upsilon Andromedae d. ") That's a cool picture, but we don't know if Upsilon Andromedae d has moons: let alone one with an atmosphere, ocean, and clouds. Using a new exomoon detecting technique, we may soon know how closely the artist's impression matches reality.... ...A few years ago I ran into an intriguing bit of informed speculation: Earth may be about as small as a planet can be, and still support life: and that's another topic. Exoplanets: Hot Jupiters, Super-Earths, and More Scientists have cataloged 1786 planets orbiting other stars. These exoplanets are in 1106 planetary systems, including 460 multiple p