Babbage: The hunt for new worlds Babbage from The Economist
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- Tech News
Three decades ago, the discovery of the first planet outside the solar system launched a new field: exoplanet astronomy. It also energised the search for life beyond Earth. Since then, more than 5,500 exoplanets have been identified. Scientists believe there could be trillions more—and experts and amateurs alike are trying to locate them. How will the discovery of these new worlds shape scientists’s understanding of how the solar system (and life) evolved?
Alok Jha, The Economist’s science and technology editor, talks to Jessie Christiansen, lead scientist of the NASA Exoplanet Archive at the California Institute of Technology.
Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+
For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.
Three decades ago, the discovery of the first planet outside the solar system launched a new field: exoplanet astronomy. It also energised the search for life beyond Earth. Since then, more than 5,500 exoplanets have been identified. Scientists believe there could be trillions more—and experts and amateurs alike are trying to locate them. How will the discovery of these new worlds shape scientists’s understanding of how the solar system (and life) evolved?
Alok Jha, The Economist’s science and technology editor, talks to Jessie Christiansen, lead scientist of the NASA Exoplanet Archive at the California Institute of Technology.
Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+
For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.