"There is a lot to be learned from studying extrasolar planets. However, the most tantalizing data is the possible discovery of Earthlike extrasolar planet, with a mass comparable to that of Earth, located at the right distance from its star to host liquid water - in other words, a place where life might have evolved or still could evolve."--book jacket.
Includes bibliographical references (p. [183]-184) and index.
Processing Action (note)
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Contents
Author's preface -- 1. Extrasolar planets : the holy grail of astronomers -- 1.1. Twelve years of discoveries and surprises -- 1.2. First clues -- 1.3. The solar system : an atypical planetary system? -- 1.4. The big question -- 2. In search of exoplanets -- 2.1. The plurality of inhabited worlds -- 2.2. Problems with direct imaging -- 2.3. Barnard's Star : a disappointment -- 2.4. Planets around pulsars -- 2.5. The key to success : velocimetry -- 2.6. The ins and outs of velocimetric detection -- 2.7. 51 Pegasi b : th first discovery -- 2.8. When planets cross the disks of stars -- 2.9. Observing a planetary transit -- 2.10. The gravitational microlensing method -- 3. Twelve years of discovery -- 3.1. A very selective method of discovery -- 3.2. Exoplanets : a heavyweight family? -- 3.3. Hot Jupiters and Pegasids -- 3.4. Somewhat eccentric planets -- 3.5. Planetary systems -- 3.6. Cannibal stars? -- 3.7. Dark hints of planets -- 3.8. Close-up of a hot Jupiter : HD 209458 b -- 3.9. How many stars have planets? -- 3.10. Failed stars or supermassive planets?
4. What do we learn from our own solar system? -- 4.1. Early theories : the seventeenth century onwards -- 4.2. How old is the solar system? -- 4.3. Looking at nearby stars -- 4.4. The protoplanetary disk : the current picture -- 4.5. The ice line -- 4.6. Terrestrial and giant planets -- 4.7. From Jupiter to Neptune : four different worlds -- 4.8. Terrestrial planets : divergent destinies -- 4.9. Between terrestrials and giants : the missing planet? -- 4.10. The origin of comets : the Kuiper Belt and the Oort Cloud -- 5. The formation of planetary systems -- 5.1. Star-birth -- 5.2. Inside protoplanetary disks -- 5.3. Planetary embryos -- 5.4. Recipes for a giant planet -- 5.5. Migrating planets -- 5.6. Survival strategies -- 5.7. Planets around pulsars -- 5.8. Stability in planetary systems -- 5.9. Disks of debris -- 5.10. The solar system : an exception? -- 5.11. The spectra of exoplanets -- 5.12. Towards new types of exoplanet.
6. Life in the universe -- 6.1. How do we define life? -- 6.2. Why life on Earth? -- 6.3. Searching for life on Mars -- 6.4. The Earth : a habitable world -- 6.5. Liquid water in the past history of Mars? -- 6.6. Europa and Titan : harbouring life in the outer solar system? -- 6.7. The first building bricks : interstellar chemistry -- 6.8. The habitability zone in planetary systems -- 6.9. The search for exoEarths -- 6.10. Detecting life on Earth -- 6.11. Detecting life on exoplanets -- 6.12. The search for extraterrestrial civilisations -- 7. Future projects -- 7.1. Observing the formation of planets in protoplanetary disks -- 7.2. The future for velocimetry -- 7.3. The astrometry of tomorrow -- 7.4. ExoEarths in transit -- 7.5. Seeing exoplanets at long last -- 7.6. Detecting exoEarths with interferometry -- Appendix 1 : The eight planets of the solar system -- Appendix 2 : The first 200 extrasolar planets -- Glossary -- Bibliography -- Index.