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Scientists are particularly interested in Saturn's moon Titan because it's one of the few known moons with its own dense atmosphere. Titan's atmosphere is also thought to be very similar to what Earth's atmosphere was a long time ago. By learning about Titan, we'll learn about our own planet.
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This site is no longer maintained. It contains historical data.

For current information about the NASA Astrobiology Program, please visit http://astrobiology.nasa.gov/


2006-08-15 | SCIENCE
NASA's Spitzer Digs Up Troves of Possible Solar Systems in Orion

A new image from the Spitzer Space Telescope has probed the clouds of dust in the Orion nebula to reveal stars that may harbor extrasolar planets. The infra-red image was able to identify 2,300 disks of planet-forming dust around stars in the Orion nebula. The disks - made of gas and dust that whirl around young suns - are too small and distant to be seen by visible-light telescopes; however, the infrared glow of their warm dust is easily spotted by Spitzer's infrared detectors.

Identifying extrasolar planets and determining how and where they form will help scientists estimate the potential number of habitable environments in the Universe.


More on this story Full text of original item from NASA - JPL, Aug 15, 2006

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The preceding news links are provided as a public service for interested users. The views and claims expressed in external internet sites are not necessarily those of NASA.

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