And he says five of the planetary candidates are both close to the size of Earth and orbit in the habitable area of their parent stars.

VOA: special.2011.02.09

But could there be intelligent life in another planetary system, in orbit around one of the 100 billion other stars in our Milky Way galaxy?

CNN: Three more homes for life in the universe?

This pending move back to planetary science from earth sub-orbit comes on the heels of improvements in pointing systems and instrument technologies that will allow ground-based controllers to fine-tune balloon payloads to include one-meter class optical and infrared telescopes.

FORBES: Budgets Nudge NASA Toward Balloon-Based Planetary Science: First Target? Comet ISON

The discovery of a true planetary system, as opposed to the solitary planets that are known to orbit a dozen or so other stars, is significant for two reasons.

ECONOMIST: Planet hunting