Hubble just might
find a real E.T.

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If there's life elsewhere in the solar system -- under the ice of Jupiter's moon Europa, say -- we know it's not garden variety.

But what about nearby solar systems?

On the recent shuttle mission to the Hubble Space Telescope, astronauts installed a new camera that may be able to find planets around the star system closest to our own.

At 4.3 light-years away, Alpha Centauri is practically in our sun's backyard, making it a prime candidate for interstellar missions.

There, two major stars circle one another at a comfortable distance. The larger, known as Alpha Centauri Alpha, is remarkably like our own yellow sun. The smaller, Beta, is an orange star, but it, too, could have an Earth-like planet harboring life, scientists say.

For the Hubble's new Advanced Camera for Surveys, photographing a terrestrial planet is a long shot -- literally. But such an image could foreshadow a thrilling new era of discovery.

--Jim Borg

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