Fifty years of intensive searching for other solar systems produced no credible claim for an extrasolar planet. Then, in the last two exciting years, several teams of astronomers around the globe caught the first glimpses of a rich crop of giant, Jupiter-sized gas planets - the first compelling evidence that not only are there others Earth-like planets, but that they may well be more plentiful than ever imagined. With an insider's perspective, prominent planetary scientist Alan Boss takes you to the front lines of this ongoing race for discovery, revealing the behind-the-scenes story of scientific determination, frustration, and triumph. Along the way we meet all the major players, from astronomer Peter van de Kamp, whose dreams of discovery lived on undeterred even after years of painstaking observations proved futile, to maverick NASA administrator Daniel Goldin, who dared to suggest in 1992 that "perhaps, just perhaps, the next generation's legacy will be an image of a planet 30 light years from Earth". We watch as the brilliant innovators Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz invent a new method for detection and, defying all odds, make the first major discovery by looking in territory where seasoned astronomers said no planets could ever be found.

The ultimate insider's account of astronomy's fantastic voyage in search of brave new worlds in faraway galaxies
"Highly recommended." -Science and Technology
"Full of humor, heartbreak, and a deep understanding of the ardor and luck that compose years of research. . . . The reader becomes not merely a receiver of Boss's vision, but a fellow explorer." -Astronomy
"A rewarding account." -Scientific American
Are we alone in the universe . . . or are there other planets generating and sustaining life? The question may be as old as civilization, but in the twilight of a century marked by countless frustrated quests to find other solar systems, several teams of pioneering astronomers have at last discovered a rich crop of mammoth, Jupiter-sized gas planets -the first compelling evidence that there may indeed be life in other galaxies.
In Looking for Earths, a prominent planetary scientist takes us along on this thrilling hunt for new life, revealing the behind-the-scenes stories of scientific determination, frustration, and triumph. Ushering us to the mountaintop observatories that house the world's most powerful telescopes, and into the tension-filled scientific meetings where new results are announced and old results overturned, Alan Boss brings the process of exploration vividly alive. Experience the roller-coaster ride as intricate observations of minuscule stellar wobbles raise hopes that at last a true planet has been found, only to be almost immediately shattered by more powerful observations. Boss also introduces the principal players whose dreams defied all odds and made the first major discovery possible.
Like no other book, Looking for Earths capturesthe lively tension between theory and observation that defines cutting-edge astronomical discovery, along with the heated battles that will determine the direction of big-ticket American astronomy for years to come.
"You will find no better introduction to one of the truly revolutionary developments in modern astronomy."-Natural History