'Hot Jupiter' Systems may Harbor Earth-like Planets

The catalogue of confirmed extrasolar planets ('exoplanets') is growing rapidly. There are currently approximately 133 known planetary systems, harboring a total of 156 exoplanets as of January 2006*. With regard to the search for life-sustaining worlds, however, the results have been disappointing. Most of the exoplanets identified so far are so-called "hot Jupiters", gas giants in a stable orbit very close to their star. Stellar systems with a hot Jupiter were once thought to be incapable of forming Earth-like planets, but suprising new evidence indicates otherwise.

If you want to include this story in your blog, copy and paste this formatted text:

<p><a href="http://www.physorg.com/news11909.html">'Hot Jupiter' Systems may Harbor Earth-like Planets</a></p> <p>The catalogue of confirmed extrasolar planets ('exoplanets') is growing rapidly. There are currently approximately 133 known planetary systems, harboring a total of 156 exoplanets as of January 2006*. With regard to the search for life-sustaining worlds, however, the results have been disappointing. Most of the exoplanets identified so far are so-called "hot Jupiters", gas giants in a stable orbit very close to their star. Stellar systems with a hot Jupiter were once thought to be incapable of forming Earth-like planets, but suprising new evidence indicates otherwise.</p>