Kepler Results Boost Chances of Finding Alien Life

For every two suns, an Earth-like planet
Posted Feb 21, 2011 3:28 PM CST
Updated Feb 21, 2011 5:15 AM CST
NASA Kepler Findings: Alien Life Possible; For Every Two Suns, an Earth-Like Planet
This image taken by the Kepler telescope and released by NASA April 16, 2009, shows an expansive, 100-square-degree patch of sky in our Milky Way galaxy where it hopes to find Earth-like planets.   (AP Photo/NASA/JPL CALTECH)

Exciting news for alien enthusiasts: The discovery by NASA scientists of a vast trove of Earth-like planets orbiting distant suns boosts our chances of finding extraterrestrial life. Findings from the Kepler telescope revealed that for every two stars in the universe, one has an Earth-like "candidate planet" orbiting it, the Telegraph reports. Says a chief Kepler scientist, "I am really delighted that we are seeing so many candidate planets and that means there is a rich ocean of planets out there to explore." Before this, just two potentially habitable planets had been discovered outside our solar system. (More habitable planet stories.)

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