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Is the nearest alien planet Proxima b habitable? 'It's complicated'
The discovery of a roughly Earth-size planet around Proxima Centauri, the nearest star to Earth, has generated a lot of buzz. -
Y’all need to chill about Proxima Centauri b
In case you weren’t on Earth on Wednesday, here’s what you missed: Astronomers found a planet as close by as a planet could possibly be — in the nearest star system, Alpha Centauri. -
Scientists discover Earth-like planet orbiting star closest to our sun
An Earth-sized planet that could boast water, even an ocean, has been found circling the star nearest our sun.
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This Earth-like planet orbits the Sun’s nearest neighbor every 11 days
On Wednesday astronomers made the kind of announcement that can only occur once in human history: the discovery of the nearest potentially habitable world beyond our solar system. -
Get ready for Perseid meteor shower: Best places to watch
This year’s Perseid meteor shower is expected to be unusually intense. UW astronomer Woody Sullivan is quoted. -
Fiery exoplanet may see a trillion lightning flashes in an hour
Using observations of storms in the solar system, a team of astronomers has extrapolated to predict lightning on several exoplanets. -
Rosetta comet carries key ingredients for life
Scientists for the first time have directly detected key organic compounds in a comet.
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Have any alien civilizations ever existed? Astronomers say the chances are sky-high
Are we alone? Fifty-five years ago, astronomer Frank Drake came up with an equation that weighed the odds for aliens. -
Why aliens have yet to be found: Alien life on exoplanets dies young
Alien life on exoplanets just might not flourish and just might die young, according to one study. Another study, co-authored by UW astronomy professor Woody Sullivan, is referenced. -
Could this distant 'super Earth' planet sustain life?
Astronomers think they've found a "super Earth" that might be capable of sustaining life. UW scientists Eric Agol, Rory Barnes, Cecilia Bitz, Benjamin Charnay and Victoria Meadows were involved. -
Rosetta spacecraft finds key building blocks of life hiding in comet dust – did an extraterrestrial object bring life to Earth?
The Rosetta spacecraft has discovered key building blocks of life in the dust of a comet. -
For asteroid-hunting astronomers, Nathan Myhrvold says the sky is falling
Wealthy technologist, Nathan Mygrvold, claims some of the world’s top experts on Earth-threatening asteroids are guilty of bad science. Željko Ivezic, professor of astronomy at the UW, is quoted. -
A spat over the search for killer asteroids
Nathan P. Myhrvold, a former chief technologist at Microsoft and compiler of a six-volume compendium of cooking knowledge, has questioned NASA’s analysis of asteroids using heat emissions. -
Alien civilizations may number in the trillions, new study says
New research suggests that more planets in the Milky Way galaxy may harbor advanced civilizations than we previously imagined. -
Hot On The Trail Of Alien Moons
UW Astronomy's Rory Barnes speaks about the explorations for moons on newly-discovered distant planets.