New Study Shows 6 Percent of Galaxy Hosts Earth-Size Worlds

You know what that means… We are not alone!

The Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics announced Wednesday that some 60 percent of the galaxy’s most ubiquitous stars are likely host planets smaller than Neptune and about 6 percent host Earth-size planets. Astronomers talked of a “Goldilocks” zone where liquid water—and life as we know it—are possible.

Courtney Dressing, a graduate astronomer who led the study, says that “the nearest Earth-like planet is expected to be about 13 light years away.” In other words, if the Milky Way was the size of the United States and earth was located on one side of Central Park, the nearest Earth-like planet is just across the park. SCARY but exciting! (CBS News)

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Minerals From Mars May Produce ‘Strongest Evidence’ for Life

Enter the Twilight Zone, humans may not be alone.

Using data from the US space agency (NASA), the Natural History Museum in London and the University of Aberdeen, said the ingredients for life could have been in a zone up to 5km down. The team said that rocks below the surface of Mars could hold the strongest evidence that the red planet supported life. The research backs up an existing theory that Mars could have supported life due to micro-organisms hidden beneath the surface.

Don’t pull out the welcome mat for extraterrestrials just yet. Dr Joseph Michalski, lead author and planetary geologist at the Natural History Museum, said that the paper simply presents a strong case for exploring the subsurface of Mars. Doing so would help scientists obtain more substantial evidence and also help find out what’s lurking beneath earth’s surface as well. 

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Felix Baumgartner's Jump from Space to Earth Breaks Sound Barrier [VIDEO]

The skydiver made history

Felix Baumgartner has become the first skydiver to break the speed of sound. On Sunday, the 43-year-old stood in the doorway of a capsule suspended above the Earth by a helium balloon; he then stepped off and made a 24-mile-high jump, reaching a maximum speed of 833.9 mph, in a free fall that lasted nearly 9 minutes. Baumgartner landed safely in the eastern New Mexico desert as millions of onlookers and friends watched. Though more than 40 television stations in 50 countries carried the live feed, there were more than 8 million simultaneous views to a YouTube live stream at its peak. (AP)

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President Obama Remembers Astronaut Neil Armstrong

The first black president mourns the death of the first man to walk on the moon

President Barack Obama has released a statement on the passing of legendary astronaut Neil Armstrong, the first man ever to set foot on the moon.

The president said that Armstrong, and fellow Apollo 11 astronauts, "carried with them the aspirations of an entire nation. They set out to show the world that the American spirit can see beyond what seems unimaginable - that with enough drive and ingenuity, anything is possible." Armstrong is quite possibly just as famous for radioing back the iconic words, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind," to his crew and millions of Americans watching the first ever moon landing in July 1969. Upon his return, Armstrong received many honors including the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. According to a statement released by his family on Saturday, Armstrong died following complications from heart surgery. He was 82. (NY1)

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