326 | Natalie Batalha on What We Know and Will Learn About Exoplanets (opens in new tab)

In a relatively short period of time, exoplanets (planets around stars other than our Sun) have gone from an intriguing conjecture to an active field of scientific study, with over 5,000 confirmed discoveries. The task now is to move beyond merely accumulating new examples, and embarking on systematic studies of their properties. What fraction of stars have planets, how are they distributed in size and distance, what kinds of atmospheres do they have, are any promising homes for life? I talk ...