![]() ![]() Decades ago, the planets in our solar system were all we knew. Though many scientific experiments teach us something new about the world, few have been able to so clearly redefine our place in the universe as Kepler. In the science press, the obituaries are already rolling out. But without a steady gaze the satellite can no longer carry out its mission. There may still be a way to fix the broken wheel or concoct some other strategy to keep Kepler shooting straight. Sad news came out from NASA yesterday that one of the satellite’s reaction wheels, a device that keeps Kepler’s eye steady, has failed. ![]() But the satellite’s quest may be at an end. Originally designed to run for three-and-a-half years, Kepler has pushed on. Extrapolations from this tiny patch of sky gave us hints of billion s more. Where the ancient Greeks knew of five planets besides our own Kepler gave us thousands. It’s been just over four years since NASA’s exoplanet-hunting Kepler satellite switched on and began staring unwaveringly at the same patch of the universe, watching for the subtle dips of light caused by a far-off planet passing in front of its star. The Kepler satellite’s first photo, captured on April 8, 2009. ![]()
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