Kepler: The Search for Earth-Size Planets Begins

Since its launch in March, 2009, the Kepler Mission has announced the discovery of 9 confirmed exoplanets (or planets outside our solar system). This video explores how the team works to combine photometry from the spacecraft, data from ground-based observatories and precise asteroseismic analysis to determine if Earths are common or rare in our Galaxy.

[NASAAmes]

@ArchNME...It is my understanding that most Earth-size planets in an orbit like Earth's, around a sun like our own, will take about 3 to 5 years to confirm. The mission has been running for nearly 2 years, so we are halfway there. We are learning a lot, in the meantime. The instrument is performing very well, and is very capable. If you would like to look at some of the transit data, please search for a website called Planet Hunters (Can't embed links here...sorry)

[Ramshobraja]

This is super exciting! Kepler, SETI, and the Europa missions are going to tell us if we are alone or not, the biggest question facing mankind.

[zyccfqs]

Now that NASA is in outerspace would it be possible to put a brake or decrease velocity? could you get 6months back ?


What would happen if NASA's next mission was 6 Months from earth, but in the same earth orbit path around the sun?

[SFolkes]

So last August we had system K9 - multiple transiting planets - then, last month, K10-b, the first rocky exoplanet, and today (Feb. 2, 2011) we have K11, the flat disc orbit system. I, for one, am a happy American tax payer. I am confident that habitable zone, Earth-size, and even oxygen biosignature are on the way. And more.

[damnote]

@Ramshobraja It's also the easiest question to answer because it's obviously a YES! I can't wait until the day we can tell life is on another Planet but I fear we'll want to go there to farm it asap.

[looksintolasers]

@ArchNME Oh man ask and ye shall recieve, as of Feb 2, there are 54 candidate planets in their habitable zones and 5 near-Earth sized planets in habitable zones!

[ArchNME]

The American tax payer was promised Earth sized planets IN THE HABITABLE ZONE!! What's the hold up? Do these planets not exist or is this device simply not capable of detecting them? Are the possibles that you just havn't yet confirmed? If so please just make the raw data available.