Mostly, these are natural fluctuations, but particularly sharp and regular changes might signify a planet passing in front of a star.

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Inara is the daughter of the late Little Feat frontman Lowell George and can lay claim that the charismatic DNA that made daddy a star before his untimely passing when she was but five years old.

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Renowned planet hunters Geoffrey Marcy and Paul Butler made the dramatic announcement last week that they had seen a dimming in the light coming from HD 209458 and said it was caused by a planet passing in front of the star.

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John Barnes, a former England star, says accurate passing is paramount because long periods of possession will dampen the fervor of the home crowd and, most importantly, prevent the English players from expending valuable energy.

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He said his crew took advantage of a passing parade to scatter while Abramsohn and his co-star, Elena Schuber, struggled to explain themselves.

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But with future telescopes, scientists say it may be possible to see past the blinding glare of the parent star to pick out just the faint light passing through a small world's atmosphere or even reflected off its surface.

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While not quite as "nano" as the SIM card-sized satellites that launched with the Shuttle Endeavor, the smaller-than-a-breadbox ExoPlanetSat is still pretty tiny by satellite standards, yet it packs all the necessary optics and technology required for what's known as transit observation -- that is, monitoring a star for decreases in brightness, which could indicate a planet passing in front of it.

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His passing is the second tragedy to hit Ulster sport following the sudden death of GAA star Cormac McAnallen with a rare heart viral infection less than a month ago.

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