Perseus Academic: The Crowded Universe by Alan Boss

From one of the leaders of the search for extrasolar planets, this is a riveting account of the next breakthrough: the imminent discovery of planets similar to Earth. The exploration of the universe with telescopes and other scientific instruments has entered a new era. NASA's Kepler mission, launched in March 2009, is the first space telescope specifically designed to find extrasolar planets the size of Earth. Now that Kepler has begun its mission, the big question on everyone's mind is: will we find them? In "The Crowded Universe", renowned astronomer Alan Boss argues that based on what we already know about planetary systems, we should find abundant Earths. The implication is that life is not only possible elsewhere in the universe, but common. The only remaining question is not whether we will detect life beyond Earth, but when. Bringing readers up to date on the latest discoveries, Alan Boss describes the current ideas of earthlike planetary formation, and explains why America must stay on the cutting edge in the new space race toward one of the most profoundly important discoveries of all time: the first confirmed detection of extraterrestrial life.

Alan Boss is a research scientist at the Carnegie Institution of Washington and a member of its Department of Terrestrial Magnetism. One of the world's leading authorities on the formation of stars and planets, Boss is the author of over 400 scientific publications and has done numerous radio and TV interviews. He lives in Silver Spring, Maryland.