A new stellar survey reveals that dust rings appear to surround the majority of young stars, signaling that the creation of planets may be the norm, not the exception, in the universe.

Habing, H.J., et al. 1999. Disappearance of stellar debris disks around main-sequence stars after 400 million years. Nature 401(Sept. 30):456.

Cowen, R. 1998. Epsilon Eridani: An early solar system? Science News 154(Aug. 8):91.

______. 1998. Unveiling the hidden universe. Science News 153(May 23):328.

Additional information on the probability of life on other planets can be found at the Drake Equation Web site of the SETI Institute at http://www.seti-inst.edu/drake-eq.html.

Additional information on the evolution of planets, stars, and galaxies can be found on NASA’s "Origins" project at http://eis.jpl.nasa.gov/origins/poster/poster.html.

Frank Drake
SETI Institute
Astronomy and Astrophysics
2035 Landings Drive
Mountain View, CA 94043

Harm J. Habing
Leiden University
Leiden Observatory
P.O. Box 9513
2300 RA Leiden
Netherlands

From Science News, Vol. 156, No. 15, October 9, 1999, p. 231. Copyright © 1999, Science Service.